LIBRARY  OF  THE  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 


PRINCETON,  N.  J, 


BV  2120  .R6  1915a  c.2 
Robinson,  Charles  Henry, 

1861-1925. 
History  of  Christian 

missijDns 


\mm 


Zbc  gntetnattonal   XTbeoIogtcal   Xtbratg> 

PLANNED  AND   FOR   YEARS   EDITED   BY 

The  LATE  Professor  CHARLES  A.  BRIGGS,  D.D.,  D.Litt., 

AND 

The  late  Principal  STEWART  D.  F.  SALMOND,  D.D. 


HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN     MISSIONS. 
By  CHARLES  HENRY  ROBINSON,  D.D. 


...   .!/^M  16  IQiQ  ^ 

International   Theological    Library  -  ^^  ^ 

-s^ 


HISTORY    OF 
CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 


CHAELES   HENEY   EOBTNSON,   D.D. 

HON.    CANON  OF  RIPON   CATHEDRAL  AND 

EDITORIAL  SECRETARY  OF  THE  SOCIETY   FOR  THE  PROPAGATION 

OF  THE  GOSPEL  IN   FOREIGN  PARTS 


NEW  YORK 
CHARLES    SCRIBNER'S    SONS 

1915 


PREFACE 

The  story  of  missions,  which  reaches  back  to  the  beginning 
of  the  Christian  era,  and  embraces  almost  every  country 
in  the  world,  cannot  be  told  within  the  limits  of  a  single 
volume.  The  task  which  I  have  ventured  to  undertake 
is  of  a  far  less  ambitious  character,  my  object  being  to 
provide  the  intelligent  reader  with  an  outline  sketch  of 
Christian  missions  which  may  enable  him  to  obtain  a 
correct  perspective,  but  which  will  need  to  be  tilled  in  for 
each  several  country  and  period  of  history  by  much  careful 
study.  This  volume  is  not  intended  to  serve  as  a  diction- 
ary nor  as  a  commentary  upon  missions,  but  as  a  text-book 
to  encourage  and  facilitate  their  study.  Those  who  have 
devoted  the  largest  amount  of  time  to  such  study  will  be 
most  ready  to  forgive  its  imperfections  and  shortcomings. 
A  well-known  authority  on  the  subject  of  Foreign  Missions, 
to  whom  the  task  of  writing  this  book  was  originally 
assigned,  but  who  failed  to  respond  to  the  invitation, 
wrote  to  its  present  author,  "  You  have  an  almost  impossible 
task;  I  should  absolutely  quail  at  the  work  you  are 
doing." 

It  would  have  been  comparatively  easy  to  fill  the 
space  allotted  to  me  by  the  publishers  with  a  discussion  of 
the  principles  which  have  governed  the  activities  of 
Christian  missionaries,  and  it  would  have  been  still  less 
difficult  to  compile  a  volume  of  statistics  which  would 
have  shown,  more  or  less  accurately,  the  progress  that  has 
been  made  in  bringing  about  the  conversion  of  non- 
Christian  lands,  but  in  neither  case  would  the  object  with 
which  this  volume  was  planned  have  been  fulfilled.      Of 


VI  PREFACE 

missionary  statistics  I  have  tried  to  avoid  any  extensive 
use,  and  have  only  given  such  when  they  appeared  to  be 
necessary  in  order  to  elucidate  the  relative  progress  that 
has  been  made  in  different  sections  of  the  mission  field  or 
at  different  epochs. 

In  attempting  to  describe  the  work  of  hundreds  of 
missionary  societies  it  is  obvious  that  no  single  individual, 
however  good  his  opportunities  for  obtaining  information 
may  be,  can  estimate  correctly  the  relative  importance  of 
that  which  has  been  done  in  each  several  country  and 
by  individual  societies.  If  in  some  instances  I  have 
appeared  to  dwell  at  disproportionate  length  upon  the 
work  of  Anglican  missions,  this  has  not  been  due  to  my 
ignorance  of  the  relative  insignificance  of  their  results,  if 
these  are  calculated  on  a  numerical  basis,  but  is  due  to  the 
fact  that  I  have  tried  to  lay  special  emphasis  upon  the 
beginnings  of  missionary  enterprises,  and  to  the  fact  that 
in  many  countries,  where  a  large  amount  of  work  is  now 
being  carried  on  by  other  societies,  missionary  enterprise 
was  initiated  by  Anglican  missionaries.  I  desire  to  tender 
my  apologies  in  advance  to  the  representatives  of  several 
American  societies  concerning  whose  work  I  have  found 
it  difficult  to  obtain  adequate  information.  As  the  series 
of  which  this  volume  forms  a  part  is  published  both  in 
Great  Britain  and  in  America,  I  venture  to  hope  that 
those  who  live  on  either  side  of  the  Atlantic  may  be 
helped  by  its  perusal  to  appreciate  better  than  they  have 
previously  done  how  much  good  work  is  being  accom- 
plished by  those  with  whom  they  have  not  themselves 
been  brought  into  contact.  In  order  to  render  my  task  a 
little  less  "  impossible  "  than  it  would  otherwise  have  been, 
I  have,  albeit  with  reluctance,  omitted  any  account  of  the 
conversion  of  Europe  and  of  the  methods  which  were 
adopted  by  its  early  missionaries.  I  had  hoped  to  have 
included  at  least  one  or  two  chapters  which  would  have 
served  as  an  introduction  to  later  missionary  efforts,  but 
the  limits  of  my  space  have  rendered  this  impossible. 

The  list  of  those  who  have  most  kindly  helped  me  to 


PREFACE  Vli 

obtain  information  for  the  purposes  of  this  book  in  Europe 
and  America,  and  who  have  read  sections  of  it  while  it  was 
passing  through  the  press,  is  too  long  to  give,  but  I  desire 
to  express  my  special  obligations  to  the  three  friends  who 
have  read  the  whole  of  the  proofs  and  by  doing  so  have 
prevented  me  from  making  a  number  of  mistakes.  These 
are  Dr.  Eugene  Stock,  formerly  editorial  secretary  of  the 
Church  Missionary  Society,  Professor  Cairns  of  Aberdeen 
University,  and  the  Eev.  B.  Yeaxlee,  formerly  editorial 
secretary  of  the  London  Missionary  Society,  and  now 
editor  of  the  United  Council  for  Missionary  Education. 

I  have  given  in  various  footnotes  references  to  a  few  of 
the  books  which  I  have  had  occasion  to  consult,  but  it  has 
not  seemed  desirable  to  attempt  any  kind  of  bibliography 
in  view  of  the  fact  that  the  Board  of  Study  for  the  Pre- 
paration of  Missionaries  has  recently  issued  "  A  Bibliography 
for  Missionary  Students,"  edited  by  Dr.  Weitbrecht,  which 
is  much  more  complete  than  any  which  it  would  have  been 
possible  for  me  to  include. 

Throughout  this  volume  I  have  used  the  expressions 
Eoman  Catholic,  Anglican,  and  Protestant  to  designate  re- 
spectively the  Churches  which  are  subject  to  the  authority 
of  the  Pope,  the  Churches  in  Great  Britain,  America,  and  else- 
where which  are  in  communion  with  the  Church  of  England, 
and  the  non-Episcopal  Churches.  The  title  Catholic  is  some- 
times claimed  as  its  exclusive  possession  by  the  Eoman 
Church,  but  as  the  title  officially  used  in  the  decrees  of 
the  Council  of  Trent  is  "  the  Catholic  and  Apostolic  Eoman 
Church,"  and  as  the  title  Catholic  is  universally  claimed  by 
the  Anglican  Church  and  is  frequently  claimed  by  other 
Churches,  it  would  have  been  misleading  to  limit  its  use  in 
the  way  suggested.  A  large  section  of  the  members  of 
the  Church  of  England  and  of  Churches  in  communion 
with  it  are  proud  to  designate  themselves  as  Protestants, 
but  inasmuch  as  many  other  members  regard  this  desig- 
nation as  inadequate,  if  not  misleading,  I  have  used  the 
neutral  word  Anglican,  which  does  not  raise  any  contro- 
versial issue.     I  have  avoided  the  use  of  the  expression 


vill  PREFACE 

'*  Free  Churches  "  as  this  would  not  have  included  several 
of  the  Protestant  bodies  in  Great  Britain  or  any  of  those 
in  America.  As  the  word  "  native  "  is  much  disliked  by 
many  of  those  to  whom  it  has  often  been  applied,  and  as 
there  is  no  justification  for  its  employment,  I  have  avoided 
its  use  except  in  the  case  of  quotations. 

In  comparing  the  statistics  issued  annually  by  the 
Eoman  Catholic  missions  with  those  issued  by  Anglican 
and  Protestant  missions,  it  is  necessary  to  bear  in  mind 
the  custom  observed  by  Eoman  Catholic  missionaries  of 
baptizing  infants  and  others  who  are  at  the  point  of  death. 
These  far  exceed  in  number  all  other  baptisms.  Thus — 
to  quote  the  figures  supplied  in  the  Atlas  Hierarchicus 
in  1913 — the  number  of  those  baptized  when  in  the 
act  of  dying  in  the  three  dioceses  of  North  Manchuria, 
South-West  Chihli,  and  East  Sichuen  during  1912  was 
48,339,  whilst  the  number  of  adults  and  of  children  of 
Christian  parents  baptized  was  only  10,274. 

In  using  the  statistics  supplied  by  several  of  the 
Anglican,  Protestant,  and  Eoman  societies,  it  is  necessary 
to  bear  in  mind  that  they  relate  in  some  instances 
to  work  which  is  being  carried  on  amongst  Europeans 
or  Americans  who  are  living  in  foreign  lands.  The 
English  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel,  the 
American  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  the  American 
Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions  and 
several  other  smaller  societies  devote  a  certain  part 
of  their  annual  incomes  to  the  support  of  those  who  are 
engaged  in  ministering  to  the  spiritual  needs  of  European 
or  American  Christians.  In  dealing  with  the  statistics 
supplied  by  the  Eoman  Catholic  organizations  a  similar 
caution  is  needed. 

The  test  of  the  success  of  missionary  enterprise  is 
furnished  by  moral  and  not  by  numerical  results,  and 
inasmuch  as  these  are  slow  to  appear  and  difficult  to 
appraise,  the  student  of  missions  is  often  tempted  to 
impatience.  He  needs  to  remember  that  the  progress  of 
Christian  missions,  if  it  is  to  be  judged  aright,  must  be 


PREFACE  ix 

measured  by  units  which  consist  not  of  years,  but  of 
generations.  In  the  beginning  of  the  third  century  of 
the  Christian  era  Dion  Cassius,  referring  to  the  inhabitants 
of  Britain,  described  them  as  an  "  idle,  indolent,  thievish, 
lying  lot  of  scoundrels."  As  a  result  of  Christian  teach- 
ing extending  over  fifty  generations,  the  proportion  of  the 
inhabitants  of  Britain  to  whom  these  epithets  can  justly  be 
applied  has  perceptibly  decreased.  The  epithets  used  by 
Dion  Cassius  are  often  applied  to  some  of  the  peoples 
amongst  whom  Christian  missionaries  are  now  working,  but 
before  we  institute  any  comparison  between  these  peoples 
and  ourselves  to  the  detriment  of  the  former,  or  to  the 
disparagement  of  missionary  efforts,  we  need  to  ascertain 
whether  the  progress  which  has  been  achieved  within 
recent  years  does  not  compare  favourably  with  that  which 
occurred  in  our  own  land  during  any  equal  period  of 
time.  Few,  if  any,  persons  who  have  made  a  prolonged 
study  of  the  work  of  Christian  missions  during  the 
last  two  generations  have  failed  to  reach  the  conclusion 
that,  as  a  direct  result  of  the  spread  of  missionary  efforts, 
the  prospects  of  the  regeneration  of  the  human  race  and 
of  the  establishment  of  the  kingdom  of  God  upon  earth 
are  brighter  than  they  have  been  at  any  previous  period 
in  the  world's  history, 

C.  H.  R. 


CONTENTS 


FAOB 

Preface    ...... 

V 

CHAP. 

I.  Introductory      .... 

1 

II.  Methods  of  Missionary  Work 

.        8 

III.  The  Dawn  of  Modern  Missions  (1580-1750) 

.      42 

IV.  India 

.      61 

V.  Ceylon      ...... 

.     145 

VI.  Burma 

.     151 

VII.  China 

.     160 

VIII.  Japan 

.     219 

IX.  Corea        

.     247 

X.  Malaysia  ...... 

.     256 

XI.  Western  and  Central  Asia    . 

.     268 

XII.  Africa      ...... 

.    277 

XIII.  America  (U.S.A.)             .... 

.    366 

XIV.  Canada     

.     382 

XV.  The  West  Indies            .... 

.    389 

XVI.  Central  America           .... 

.    401 

XVII.  South  America   ..... 

.    409 

XVIII.  Australia 

,     430 

XIX.  New  Zealand     ..... 

.     440 

Xll  CONTENTS 

CHAP.  PAQK 

XX.  Isles  op  the  Pacific  .....    445 

XXI.  Missions  to  Moslems  .....    465 

XXII.  Missions  to  the  Jews  .....    473 

XXIII.  Missionary  Societies  .....    477 

XXIV.  The  Outlook       .  ,  .  .  .  .493 

Appendix.— Christian    Reunion    in    the    Mission 

Field  ,  .  .  .  ,  .499 

Index        ,  ,  .  .  ,  ,  .607 


ABBREVIATIONS 

A.B.C.F.M.     .    American    Board    of    Commissioners    for    Foreign 

Missions. 

A.B.F.M.U.  or  A.B.M.U.     American     Baptist     Foreign     Missionary 
Union. 

A.M.E.C.    .  .  American  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

A.U.P.M.    .  .  American  United  Presbyterian  Mission. 

B.  &  F.B.S.  .  British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society. 

B.M.S.    .     .  .  Baptist  Missionary  Society. 

C.I.M.    .    .  .  China  Inland  Mission. 

C.E.Z.M  S. .  .  Church  of  England  Zenana  Missionary  Society. 

C.L.S.     .    .  .  Christian  Literature  Society  in  India. 

D.U.M.  .     .  .  Dublin  University  Mission. 

E.P.M.    .    ,  .  Presbyterian  Church  of  England  Mission. 

F.M.S.    .    .  .  Foreign  Missionary  Society. 

L.J.S.     .    .    .     London  Society  for  Promoting  Christianity  among 
the  Jews. 

L.M.S.   .     .     .     London  Missionary  Society. 

M.E.C.  or  A.M.E.C.     American  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

R.C Koman  Catholic. 

S.A.M.S.     .    .     South  American  Missionary  Society. 

S.P.C.K.     .     .     Society  for  Promoting  Christian  Knowledge. 

xiii 


xiv  ABBREVIATIONS 

S.P.G.    .     .     .     Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign 
Parts. 

S.V.M.U.  .  .  Student  Volunteer  Missionary  Union. 

U.F.C.S.  or  U.F.C.     United  Free  Church  of  Scotland. 

U.M.C.A.  .  .  Universities'  Mission  to  Central  Africa. 

W.M.S.  .  .  .  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary  Society. 

Y.M.C.A.  .  .  Young  Men's  Christian  Association. 

Y.W.C.A.  .  .  Young  Women's  Christian  Association. 

Z.B.M.    .  .  .  Zenana  Baptist  Mission. 

Z.M.S.    .  ,  .  Zenana  Bible  and  Medical  Mission. 


HISTORY  OF  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS 


HISTOEY  OF  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS 


INTRODUCTORY. 

The  missionary  activities  of  the  Christian  Church  have, 
since  the  Day  of  Pentecost,  been  one  of  its  distinguishing 
characteristics.  Nevertheless,  there  are  some  modern 
critics  who  maintain  that  its  world-wide  propaganda,  which 
the  apostles  inaugurated  and  which  subsequent  Christian 
missionaries  developed,  was  not  founded  upon  any  direct 
commands  given  by  our  Lord  and  did  not  form  part  of 
His  original  plan.  Over  against  the  command  contained 
in  St.  Matthew  (xxviii.  19)  to  go  into  all  the  world  and 
make  disciples  of  all  the  nations,  they  set  the  words, 
recorded  in  the  same  Gospel  (xv.  24),  "  I  was  not  sent 
but  unto  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel,"  and  the 
fact  that  the  original  commission  given  to  the  Twelve  con- 
tained no  statement  that  they  were  to  be  pioneers  of  a  world- 
wide mission.  It  is  clear  that  the  question  "  Did  our 
Lord  from  the  first  intend  that  the  religion  which  He 
taught  should  become  a  missionary  religion  throughout  the 
whole  world  ? "  cannot  be  answered  by  quoting  individual 
texts,  but  that  the  answer  must  be  deduced  from  a 
consideration  of  the  essential  character  of  His  mission. 
The  words  in  which  He  Himself  defined  that  mission 
were :  "  The  Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save  that 
which  was  lost."  The  title  which  He  here  applies  to 
Himself  is,  as  all  critics  admit,  one  which  He  habitually 
used.     If  the  assumption  of  this  title  be  regarded,  as  all 


2  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Christians  have  regarded  it,  as  a  claim  to  be  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  whole  human  race,  its  occurrence  in  this 
passage  implies  that  the  scope  of  our  Lord's  mission  includes 
all  human  beings  who  stand  in  need  of  being  saved,  and 
the  limitation  of  its  scope  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house 
of  Israel  must  be  regarded  as  having  been  merely 
provisional. 

In  endeavouring  to  interpret  the  underlying  meaning 
of  our  Lord's  teaching,  it  is  necessary  to  remember  that 
inasmuch  as  it  was  addressed  to  the  hearts  as  well  as 
to  the  minds  of  men,  he  alone  is  qualified  to  understand 
its  full  significance  in  whose  heart  it  has  awakened  a 
sympathetic  response,  and  whose  life  has  become  in  some 
degree  a  reflection  of  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ.  If  this 
be  admitted,  and  if,  therefore,  we  may  appeal  for  the 
interpretation  of  His  intention  regarding  the  evangeliza- 
tion of  the  world  from  the  intellectual  student  of 
Christianity  to  the  man  to  whom  "  to  live  is  Christ,"  there 
can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  reply  that  we  shall  receive. 
It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  the  more  Christlike 
a  man  becomes  the  more  ardent  becomes  his  desire 
to  bring  the  whole  world  to  his  Master's  feet  and  the 
more  certain  does  he  feel  that  in  seeking  to  accomplish 
this  object  he  is  rightly  interpreting  the  mind  of  his 
Teacher.  To  know  the  mind  of  Christ  we  must  appeal 
not  only  to  the  Gospel  records,  but  to  the  beliefs  and 
aspirations  of  the  most  Christlike  persons  in  this  and  every 
other  time. 

An  appeal  lies,  moreover,  not  only  to  the  subjective 
but  to  the  objective  experience  of  mankind. 

The  unique  claim  of  Christianity  to  be  the  uni- 
versal religion  is  not  grounded  upon  the  possession  of  a 
sacred  book,  nor  upon  the  miracles  which  accompanied 
its  introduction  into  the  world,  nor  upon  its  revelation  of 
a  future  life,  nor,  lastly,  upon  the  testimony  of  the  saints 
and  heroes  who  have  accepted  its  teachings.  Other 
religions  which  do  not  attempt  to  appeal  to  all  mankind 
have  advanced  similar  claims.     The  unique  claim  which 


INTRODUCTION  3 

Christianity  puts  forward  is  grounded  upon  the  fact,  of 
which  the  whole  history  of  Christian  missions  serves  to  sub- 
stantiate the  truth,  that  it  alone,  of  all  religions,  is  capable 
of  satisfying  the  needs  of  every  member  of  the  human  race. 
The  Chinese  who  said  to  Bishop  Boone,  whom  he  had 
helped  to  translate  the  New  Testament  into  his  own 
language,  "  Whoever  made  that  book  made  me ;  it  knows 
all  that  is  in  my  heart,"  was  putting  into  language  the 
response  which  the  teaching  of  the  Christian  message 
has  evoked  from  men  of  every  race  and  of  every  stage 
of  civilization  or  of  savagery  throughout  the  world.  If 
we  have  read  aright  the  story  of  Christian  missions,  we 
are  justified  in  saying  that  the  religion  of  the  New 
Testament  has  been  tested  in  every  clime  and  amongst 
races  of  every  degree  of  culture,  and  that  its  teachings 
have  never  been  presented  patiently  and  lovingly  to  any 
people  whom  they  have  failed  to  uplift  and  transform 
and  whose  deepest  needs  they  have  failed  to  supply. 
The  Christian  religion  came  into  existence  as  the  result 
of  the  manifestation  of  One  who  was  at  once  the  Son  of 
God  and  the  Son  of  man,  and  its  claim  to  universal 
acceptance  is  founded  on  the  fact  that  this  divine-human 
Being  can  supply  the  whole  world's  needs. 

There  is  no  race  or  people  to  which  the  gospel 
message,  when  once  it  has  been  apprehended,  has  appealed 
in  vain.  A  savage  Bechuana,  on  hearing  the  story  of 
the  Cross,  was  deeply  moved,  and  exclaimed,  "Jesus, 
away  from  there  !  That  is  my  place."  The  early  Moravian 
missionaries  in  Greenland  laboured  for  years  to  teach  their 
hearers  the  principles  of  right  and  goodness,  but  without 
result.  When,  however,  they  read  to  them  the  Gospel 
account  of  the  death  of  Christ,  one  of  them  exclaimed, 
"  Why  did  you  not  tell  us  this  before  ?  Tell  us  it  again."  ^ 
Its  repetition  was  speedily  followed  by  the  conversion  of 
many  of  their  hearers.  If  Christian  missions  have  done 
nothing  else,  they  have  proved  that  the  earth  contains  no 
race  so  degraded  but  that  the  gospel  story  can  appeal  to  it. 

1  See  p.  52. 


4  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

In  the  course  of  our  attempt  to  sketch  the  work  of 
Christian  missionaries  we  shall  have  occasion  to  point  out 
some  of  the  distinctive  needs  of  the  various  races  to  which 
their  appeal  has  been  made,  and  the  response  that  it  has 
served  to  evoke,  but  before  doing  so  it  may  be  well  to 
recall  three  fundamental  needs  of  which  every  human 
being  is  conscious,  and  which  Christianity  can  supply  more 
completely  than  any  other  religion. 

1.  Man,  whether  savage  or  civilized,  needs  a  power 
greater  than  any  that  he  is  conscious  of  possessing  which 
can  enable  him  to  live  up  to  his  own  highest  ideals.  In 
studying  the  chief  non-Christian  religions  we  come  across 
rules  and  maxims  which,  if  they  could  be  translated  into 
action,  would  enable  their  possessors  to  rise  high  above 
the  level  on  which  their  lives  are  being  lived,  but  we 
search  in  vain  in  the  sacred  books  of  these  religions  for  a 
power  or  source  of  inspiration  that  can  enable  them  so 
to  rise.  In  Christianity,  on  the  other  hand,  we  have  a 
revelation  of  the  highest  ideals  of  conduct  and  we  have  at 
the  same  time  offered  to  us  the  help  of  One  who  has  Him- 
self lived  the  highest  life  and  can  live  it  over  again  in  the 
lives  of  those  who  accept  His  help.  The  task  of  the 
Christian  missionary  is  not  to  sweep  away  or  undermine 
the  teachings  of  non-Christian  religions,  but  to  reveal  the 
source  of  the  power  which  can  enable  men  to  fulfil  the 
best  teaching  which  these  religions  inculcate  and  to  rise  to 
higher  ideals  than  any  to  which  they  point. 

The  contrast  between  the  helplessness  of  the  great 
Oriental  religions  when  confronted  with  failure  to  reach 
life's  highest  ideals  and  the  helpfulness  of  Christianity  is 
well  illustrated  by  an  allegory  told  by  a  Chinese  catechist 
who  was  trying  to  explain  to  his  fellow-countrymen  the 
practical  difference  between  the  way  of  salvation  as  taught 
respectively  by  Confucius,  Buddha,  and  Christ.  He  de- 
scribed man  as  a  traveller  who  had  fallen  from  the  narrow 
path  of  rectitude  into  an  abyss  of  evil  and  despair. 
Presently  on  the  narrow  path  above  him  China's  great 
teacher,  Confucius,  appears,  and  to  him  the  fallen  traveller 


INTRODUCTION  5 

appeals  for  help,  but  only  to  receive  the  reply  uttered  in 
tones  of  reproach,  "  Here  is  no  place  for  prayer."  When 
Confucius  has  gone  on  his  way  Buddha  is  seen  ap- 
proaching, and  in  response  to  an  agonized  appeal  for 
help  he  descends  a  few  steps  from  the  narrow  path,  and 
peering  with  sympathetic  gaze  into  the  abyss,  he  says,  "  If 
thou  couldst  rise  a  little  higher,  then  could  I  deliver 
thee,"  but  the  weak  and  exhausted  traveller  sinks  yet 
lower  into  the  murky  depth.  Finally,  the  form  of  Jesus 
Christ  is  seen  advancing  along  the  same  narrow  path,  and 
to  Him  is  the  traveller's  final  appeal  addressed.  No  sooner 
has  it  been  uttered  than  the  divine  Deliverer,  clothed  in 
light,  descends  to  the  bottom  of  the  abyss,  and  raising  the 
helpless  traveller  in  His  arms,  carries  him  up  to  the 
narrow  path,  and  having  set  his  feet  securely  upon  it, 
walks  by  his  side  supporting  him  ever  and  anon  until  the 
path  emerges  at  last  into  the  final  light.  The  allegory 
helps  us  to  understand  how  Christianity  appealed  to  a 
Confucian  Buddhist,  and  wherein  the  gospel  message 
differs  from  the  teachings  of  other  religions. 

2.  The  second  need  of  which  man  is  conscious 
is  sympathy.  If  his  efforts  to  rise  to  a  higher  moral 
and  spiritual  level  than  that  to  which  he  has  as  yet 
attained  are  not  to  end  in  despair,  he  needs  to  know 
that  there  is  a  Being  to  whom  his  welfare  is  a  matter  of 
immediate  concern,  and  who  can  both  rejoice  and  sym- 
pathize, that  is,  "suffer  together  with"  him.  Divine 
sympathy  is  a  concept  that  can  hardly  be  said  to  exist 
outside  the  Christian  revelation,  but  man  has  no  greater 
need  than  that  which  these  words  express.  Bishop  Selwyn 
of  New  Zealand  told  how  the  knowledge  that  God  suffered 
because  of  man's  sin  transformed  the  character  of  the 
cannibal  savages  of  New  Zealand.     He  wrote  in  1840  : 

"  I  am  in  the  midst  of  a  sinful  people,  who  have  been 
accustomed  to  sin  uncontrolled  from  their  youth.  If  I 
speak  to  a  native  on  murder,  infanticide,  cannibalism,  and 
adultery,  they  laugh  in  my  face,  and  tell  me  I  may  think 
these  acts  are  bad,  but  they  are  very  good  for  a  native,  and 


6  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

they  cannot  conceive  any  harm  in  them.  But,  on  the  con- 
trary, when  I  tell  them  that  these  and  other  sins  brought 
the  Son  of  God,  the  great  Creator  of  the  universe,  from  His 
eternal  glory  to  this  world,  to  be  incarnate  and  to  be  made 
a  curse  and  to  die,  then  they  open  their  eyes  and  ears  and 
mouths,  and  wish  to  hear  more,  and  presently  they  acknow- 
ledge themselves  sinners,  and  say  they  will  leave  off  their 
sins."i 

3.  Lastly,  if  a  man  is  to  be  sustained  in  his  efforts  to 
realize  the  highest  ideals  embodied  in  his  own  religion  and 
to  rise  to  those  which  are  still  higher,  he  needs  to  become 
the  possessor  of  a  hope  which  reaches  out  beyond  his 
present  horizon.  The  saddest  feature  of  the  religions  of 
ancient  Greece  and  Eome,  and  of  the  great  religions  of  the 
East,  is  the  absence  of  hope.  Amongst  the  debris  of  an 
ancient  house  in  Salonica  (the  Thessalonica  of  St.  Paul's 
time)  were  found  two  funeral  urns  of  apparently  the  same 
date:  one  bore  the  inscription,  "No  hope";  the  other, 
"  Christ,  my  life."  The  contrast  between  the  two  is  the 
contrast  between  man's  destiny  as  interpreted  by  most  of 
the  chief  religions  of  the  world  and  man's  destiny  as  inter- 
preted by  the  message  which  Christian  missionaries  have 
to  proclaim.  According  to  orthodox  Hinduism,  we  have 
now  reached  the  five  thousandth  year  of  the  Kali  Yuga, 
or  "evil  cycle,"  of  which  there  are  427,000  more  years  to 
run.  There  will  then  be  three  other  cycles  extending 
over  4,000,000  years  before  this  evil  cycle  again  recurs, 
which  is  to  happen  many  thousands  of  times.  The  possi- 
bility that  after  countless  re-births,  extending  over  unnum- 
bered millions  of  years,  a  man  may  at  last  escape  from 
the  miseries  of  human  existence,  furnishes  no  ground  of 
hope  that  is  worthy  of  the  name. 

The  conviction  that  in  Christianity  alone  of  all  the 
religions  of  the  world  are  to  be  found  the  revelation  of  the 
power,  the  sympathy,  and  the  hope  which  the  world  needs, 
begets  the  assurance  that  it  will  one  day  fulfil  what  we 
believe  to  have  been  the  purpose  of  its  Founder  and  will 

1  Life  of  Bishop  Selwyn,  p.  72. 


INTRODUCTION  7 

become  the  religion  of  the  whole  world.  Meanwhile,  as 
the  message  carried  by  the  Christian  missionaries  makes 
its  appeal  to  one  race  after  another,  the  fact  that  it  con- 
tinues to  meet  the  needs  of  all  provides  cumulative 
evidence  that  the  source  of  the  message  is  divine.  The 
missionary,  albeit  unconsciously,  becomes  the  Christian 
apologist.  The  only  certain  proof  that  the  Christian 
Bible  is  inspired  is  that  it  continues  to  inspire,  and  this 
proof  the  missionary  is  in  a  position  to  furnish  to  a 
unique  extent.  It  is  impossible  in  the  brief  space  at  our 
disposal  to  follow  out  this  line  of  thought,  and  to  show 
otherwise  than  by  incidental  illustrations  how  the  gospel 
message  has  inspired  men  of  all  races  to  lead  new  lives 
and  to  aim  at  higher  and  ever  higher  ideals,  but  the  story 
of  Christian  missions  will  have  been  ill  told  if  it  does  not 
serve  to  demonstrate  this  fact. 


II. 

METHODS  OF  MISSIONARY  WORK. 

One  of  the  chief  results  which  the  careful  student  may 
hope  to  attain  by  a  study  of  Christian  missions  is  an 
intelligent  appreciation  of  the  methods  that  are  likely  to 
prove  most  successful  in  the  mission  field  to-day.  The 
materials  for  study  are  well-nigh  inexhaustible.  We  may 
venture  to  assert  that  no  new  method  of  prosecuting 
Christian  missions  has  been  suggested  within  recent  years 
which  has  not  been  tested  in  practice  during  the  eighteen 
centuries  that  lie  between  us  and  the  work  of  the  first 
missionaries.  It  is  much  to  be  desired  that  those  who 
speak,  or  write  books,  on  Christian  missions  from  the  theo- 
retical standpoint  would  fit  themselves  more  adequately 
for  their  task  by  a  prolonged  study  of  their  subject  carried 
on  both  in  libraries  at  home  and  in  the  mission  field.  In 
attempting  to  discuss  methods  of  missionary  work,  the  first 
question  that  arises  is.  What  guidance  can  we  hope  to 
obtain  from  the  pages  of  the  New  Testament,  and  in 
particular,  from  the  experience  of  the  greatest  of  Christian 
missionaries,  the  Apostle  St.  Paul  ? 

The  task  which  he  set  himself  to  accomplish  was  to 
interpret,  by  word  and  action,  his  Master's  purpose  of  love 
towards  the  whole  world,  and,  supported  by  the  belief  that 
Jesus  Christ  was  not  only  with  him  but  in  him,  he  trans- 
formed Christianity  from  a  national  into  the  universal 
religion,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  the  missionary  work 
which  the  Church  of  Christ  has  since  accomplished.  The 
chapters  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  which  refer  to  his 
work  when  read  in  conjunction  with  the  letters  addressed 


METHODS    OF    MISSIONARY    WORK  9 

to  the  churches  which  he  helped  to  establish,  help  us  to 
understand  the  principles  which  guided  his  missionary 
policy  and  the  methods  which  he  adopted  in  his  endeavours 
to  embody  these  principles  in  action. 

Every  one  who  desires  to  promote  the  success  of 
Christian  missions  to-day  will  admit  that  the  records 
which  have  been  preserved  of  St.  Paul's  missionary 
labours  have  a  significance  which  transcends  the  limita- 
tions of  time  and  place  by  which  his  work  was 
originally  conditioned,  but  when  he  proceeds  to  ask  how 
far  the  methods  adopted  by  St.  Paul  can  or  ought  to  be 
copied  in  any  part  of  the  mission  field  of  to-day,  he 
is  confronted  with  a  problem  which  he  will  find  it  hard 
to  solve. 

Few  Christians  would  deny  that  the  principles  on 
which  St.  Paul  based  his  missionary  methods  are  applicable 
to  all  times  and  to  all  lands,  but  any  one  who  surveys  the 
vast  area  of  the  modern  mission  field  and  who  appreciates, 
as  far  as  the  limitations  of  his  knowledge  will  allow,  the 
differences  which  exist  between  the  conditions  which  govern 
missionary  development,  say  in  Japan  and  West  Africa,  or 
in  India  and  New  Guinea,  will  realize  that  the  exigencies 
of  the  modern  mission  field  demand  more  numerous  and 
more  complex  methods  of  action  than  any  which  can  be 
deduced  from  the  recorded  experiences  of  St.  Paul  or  his 
fellow-apostles. 

There  are  three  questions  which  are  constantly  being 
discussed  by  the  representatives  of  missionary  societies  at 
home  and  by  those  responsible  for  the  supervision  of 
missionary  work  abroad.  These  concern  (1)  the  diffusion 
of  missionary  influence  over  wide  areas  as  contrasted  with 
its  concentration  at  strategic  points ;  (2)  the  qualifications 
to  be  required  of  those  who  are  to  be  appointed  as  ministers 
of  the  Christian  Church  in  the  mission  field ;  (3)  the  stage 
in  the  development  of  a  particular  mission  at  which  it  is 
wise  to  attempt  the  establishment  of  an  independent 
Christian  Church  or  branch  of  the  Christian  Church  in  a 
non-Christian  country. 


10  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

St.  Paul's  Missionary  Methods. 

Before  proceeding  to  illustrate  from  the  history  of 
missions  the  answers  which  have  been  given  and  are  being 
given  to  these  questions,  let  us  ask  how  far  we  are  justified 
in  appealing  to  the  experience  of  St.  Paul  in  the  hope  of 
obtaining  an  authoritative  solution  to  the  problems  which 
they  raise.  Those  who  have  appealed  to  his  example  and 
experience  and,  on  the  strength  of  such  an  appeal,  have 
condemned  many  of  the  practices  of  modern  missionaries, 
have  too  often  failed  to  realize  how  different  were  the 
conditions  under  which  he  worked  from  those  which  prevail 
in  the  greater  part  of  the  mission  field  to-day. 

1.  The  first  of  these  questions  may  be  expressed  thus : 
Is  it  wiser  as  a  general  rule  to  diffuse  missionary  effort 
over  a  wide  district  in  the  hope  of  reaching  all  who  may 
be  found  willing  to  listen  to  the  Gospel  message,  or  to 
concentrate  the  missionary  forces  at  a  few  important 
centres,  in  the  hope  that  the  light  of  the  Gospel  may 
eventually  radiate  throughout  the  surrounding  districts 
which  are  for  the  time  being  perforce  neglected  ?  It  is 
obvious  that  the  conditions  under  which  missionary 
work  has  been,  and  is  being,  carried  on  in  different 
parts  of  the  world  differ  so  widely  that  no  answer  can  be 
given  to  this  question  to  which  exceptions  must  not  be 
admitted. 

To  take  a  single  illustration,  which  has  a  special 
bearing  upon  the  problem  raised  by  the  first  question. 

St.  Paul's  missionary  activities  were  largely,  if  not 
entirely,  confined  to  towns,  whereas  the  chief  sphere  of 
the  modern  missionary  may  be  said  to  lie  in  villages. 
The  visitor  to  India  or  China  who  takes  an  interest  in 
missionary  work  is  naturally  impressed  with  the  crying 
needs  of  the  vast  centres  of  population  which  he  sees,  and 
is  apt  to  forget  that  the  population  contained  in  the  towns 
represents  but  the  tiniest  fragment  of  the  total  population. 
Nearly  half  the  human  race  is  to  be  found  to-day  in  the 
villages  of  India  and  China.     These  villages  are  so  small 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY   WORK  11 

and  so  close  together  that  it  is  often  possible,  where  the 
ground  rises  by  a  few  feet,  to  count  twenty  or  thirty  at 
one  time. 

It  is  obvious,  therefore,  that  the  experiences  of  the 
modern  missionary  who  tries  to  evangelize  the  villages  which 
constitute  the  greater  part  of  the  modern  mission  fields  are 
likely  to  differ  widely  from  the  experiences  which  St.  Paul 
met  with  in  his  attempt  to  preach  the  Gospel  in  some  of 
the  great  cities  of  the  ancient  world. 

Even  when  we  compare  missionary  work  in  modern 
cities  with  that  carried  on  by  St.  Paul,  the  conditions  of 
the  two  will  be  found  to  be  widely  dissimilar.  In  nearly 
all  the  cities  in  which  St.  Paul  worked,  Greek  or  Latin 
was  understood,  and  a  Jewish  community  afforded  him  the 
opportunity  to  appeal  through  Jewish  converts  to  the 
wider  circle  with  which  they  were  in  touch.  In  one  case 
only  did  he  attempt  to  start  missionary  work  and  to  bring 
into  existence  Christian  Churches  in  a  district  where  the 
prevailing  conditions  approximated  to  those  which  are  found 
in  the  greater  part  of  the  mission  field  to-day. 

Bishop  Mylne,  who  was  formerly  Bishop  of  Bombay, 
in  his  book  entitled.  Missions  to  Hindus,  maintains  (and 
there  is  much  to  be  said  for  his  contention)  that  St.  Paul 
adopted  a  mistaken  policy  in  attempting  to  do  pere- 
grinating evangelistic  work  in  Galatia,  and  urges  that  his 
letter  to  the  Galatians  and  the  fact  that  he  never  again 
attempted  similar  work  prove  that  he  had  realized  his 
mistake. 

"One  great  convincing  experience,"  Bishop  Mylne 
writes,  "  was  to  come  to  St.  Paul  which  would  serve  with 
its  disastrous  shock  to  convince  him  of  the  falsity  of  his 
method  —  the  great  Galatian  apostasy.  .  .  .  The  method 
which  had  prospered  elsewhere  had  disastrously  failed 
among  them.  The  withdrawal  of  his  personal  presence  from 
converts  of  a  barbarous  race  with  a  poor  reputation  for 
stability,  far  removed  from  civilizing  influences,  had  proved 
to  be  a  shock  to  their  faith  against  which  they  could  not 
stand.     They  fell  victims  to  the  first  false  teachers,  who 


12  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

offered  them  a  plausible  Judaism  in  place  of  the  Gospel  of 
Christ."  1 


With  this  one  exception,  it  would  appear  from  the 
accounts  of  St.  Paul's  missionary  labours  which  have  been 
preserved  that  he  never  attempted  to  preach  in  villages, 
but  concentrated  his  efforts  upon  towns,  and  specially  upon 
six  or  seven  towns  where  he  sought  to  establish  Christian 
Churches,  which  should  serve  as  strategic  points  in  view 
of  the  eventual  evangelization  of  the  surrounding  districts. 
On  the  one  occasion  on  which  he  and  his  companions 
thought  of  attempting  to  evangelize  the  scattered  country 
districts  of  Bithynia,  "the  Spirit  of  Jesus  suffered  them 
not,"  2  and  impelled  them  to  extend  their  labours  to  the 
towns  of  southern  Europe. 

It  would  appear,  therefore,  that  in  so  far  as  St.  Paul's 
experience  affords  any  help  towards  the  solution  of  the 
problem  raised  by  the  first  question,  it  tells  in  favour  of 
concentrated  as  opposed  to  diffused  missionary  work.  At 
the  same  time  the  fact  that  his  experience  of  a  diffused 
mission  appears  to  have  been  limited  to  a  single  instance, 
makes  it  impossible  to  regard  this  as  affording  unmistakable 
guidance. 

The  lesson  which  we  have  ventured  to  deduce  from 
the  example  of  St.  Paul  is  endorsed  by  the  experience  of 
later  missionaries. 

Whilst  examples  might  be  obtained  from  many  other 
countries,  the  history  of  Christian  missions  in  India  affords 
the  most  convincing  illustrations  of  the  comparative 
value  of  the  two  methods.  In  the  judgment  of  Bishop 
Mylne,  whom  we  have  already  quoted,  the  three  greatest 
missionaries  who  have  laboured  in  India  were  the  Jesuit, 

1  Pp.  86, 124.  Bishop  Mylne  held  with  Bishop  Lightfoot  that  "  Galatia  " 
was  in  the  extreme  north  of  Asia  Minor,  but  if  we  accept  Ramsay's  theory 
that  it  was  in  the  south,  and  included  Phrygia  and  Lycaouia,  it  would  still 
be  the  ease  that  the  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  Galatia  to  whom  St. 
Paul  preached  were  less  civilized  than  were  those  amongst  whom  the  other 
Christian  churches  established  by  him  were  founded. 

^  Acts  xvi.  7. 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY    WORK  13 

Francis  Xavier,  the  Lutheran,  Schwartz,  and  the  Baptist, 
Carey.  As  we  shall  see  later  on,^  Xavier  adopted  the 
"  diffusive "  method  as  completely  as  it  was  possible  for 
any  one  to  adopt  it.  His  aim  was  to  spread  a  know- 
ledge of  the  Christian  faith  over  the  widest  possible 
area,  and  in  accordance  with  his  principles  of  evangeliz- 
ation, he  baptized  tens  of  thousands  of  persons  whose 
language  he  did  not  understand  and  whose  knowledge  of 
Christianity  was  limited  to  the  verbal  acceptance  of  a  few 
dogmatic  statements.  He  did  this  in  the  hope  that  some 
of  them,  or  at  any  rate  that  some  of  their  children,  might 
eventually  attain  a  fuller  knowledge  of  the  faith.  His 
successors  down  to  the  present  day  have  endorsed  his 
action,  and  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  have  followed  in  his 
steps.  What,  then,  has  been  the  result  ?  To  quote  the 
words  of  Bishop  Mylne : 

"The  result  is  that  the  conversion  of  the  country  to 
Christianity  is  no  nearer  than  it  was  when  he  left  it,  for 
anything  that  his  followers  have  done  ;  that  they  form  but 
a  Christian  caste,  unprogressive,  incapable  of  evangelizing, 
observing  distinctions  of  caste  within  the  body  of  the 
Christian  Church ;  holding  their  own  with  a  pathetic 
faithfulness  among  people  of  other  creeds,  but  woefully  low 
in  their  practice,  and  scandalously  superstitious  in  their  con- 
ceptions ;  afraid  of  the  Hindu  gods ;  and  all  but  idolaters 
themselves  in  their  veneration  of  saints  and  their  images."  ^ 

The  methods  adopted  by  Schwartz,  to  whose  work  we 
shall  have  occasion  to  refer  later  on,  differed  in  important 
respects  from  those  of  Xavier.  He  spent  nearly  fifty  years 
in  Southern  India  and  was  able  to  speak  the  language  of 
the  people  to  whom  he  appealed.  He  refused  to  baptize 
until  the  candidates  for  baptism  had  given  clear  proofs  of 
repentance  and  faith.  He  traversed  enormous  areas,  and 
at  his  death  in  1798  his  converts  were  reckoned  by  tens 
of  thousands.  When,  however,  several  of  the  missions 
which  he  had  founded  were  taken  over  by  the  S.P.G.  in 
1825,  villages  and  communities  which  had  formerly  been 
^  See  pp.  70-74.  2  Missions  to  Hindus,  p.  115  sq. 


14  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Christian  were  found  to  have  lost  almost  all  knowledge  of 
the  Christian  faith  and  to  have  relapsed  into  Hinduism. 
The  collapse  of  the  greater  part  of  Schwartz's  work  is 
apparently  to  be  attributed  to  the  diffused  methods  of 
evangelization  which  he  adopted  and  to  his  "reliance  on 
the  power  of  the  gospel  to  develop  spiritual  independence 
in  characters  quite  unprepared  for  it." 

The  aim  that  Carey  set  before  him  was  to  create  one 
"red-hot  centre  from  which  the  light  and  influence  of 
Christianity  might  radiate  throughout  a  gradually  widening 
circle."  We  shall  have  occasion  later  on  to  refer  in 
greater  detail  to  the  methods  adopted  by  Carey  and  to 
point  out  the  lasting  nature  of  the  results  which  he 
achieved  (see  pp.  81-83). 

It  would  be  easy  to  produce  evidence  of  a  similar 
character  from  other  mission  fields,  though  in  no  other 
country  has  sufficient  time  elapsed  since  missionary  work 
was  inaugurated  to  enable  the  results  to  be  seen  as  clearly 
as  they  are  to  be  seen  to-day  in  India. 

2.  The  second  problem  to  which  we  referred  is  raised 
by  the  question,  What  moral  and  intellectual  qualifications 
ought  to  be  required  of  those  to  be  appointed  as  ministers 
of  a  newly  established  Christian  Church  in  the  foreign 
mission  field  ?  There  are  some  who  have  sought  to  find  an 
answer  to  this  question  by  referring  to  the  example  of  St. 
Paul,  who,  in  certain  instances  after  a  stay  of  a  few  months 
or  even  a  few  weeks  in  a  city,  felt  able  to  appoint  elders 
to  carry  on  the  work  which  he  had  begun  and  to  guide 
and  organize  the  infant  Church.  They  ask.  If  St.  Paul 
was  able  to  act  thus,  how  can  it  be  necessary  that  a  course 
of  preparation  extending  over  several  years  should  be 
required  before  ministers  are  appointed  or  ordained  in 
countries  where  Christian  missionary  work  is  being  carried 
on  to-day  ?  Before  we  can  admit  the  relevance  of  this 
direct  appeal  to  the  example  of  St.  Paul  we  need  to  know 
what  were  the  moral  and  intellectual  qualifications  of  the 
elders  to  whom  he  was  accustomed  to  entrust  the  carry- 
ing   on    of  the   missionary  work    which    he  inaugurated. 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY   WORK  15 

Outside  Galatia  it  is  doubtful  whether  St.  Paul  ever 
founded  a  Church  in  any  place  in  which  there  did  not 
already  exist  a  Jewish  synagogue  and  in  which  Jewish 
methods  of  church  organization  were  not  well  understood. 
It  is  certain  that  in  the  great  majority  of  the  places  in 
which  he  is  reported  to  have  preached  the  infant  Church 
included  Jews  or  Jewish  proselytes  who  had  accepted  the 
teaching  contained  in  the  Old  Testament  before  they 
became  Christians,  and  who  must  have  exerted  a  profound 
and  lasting  influence  upon  the  converts  who  joined  the 
Church  from  the  ranks  of  heathenism.  How  widely 
scattered  were  the  Jews  may  be  inferred  from  the  remark 
of  Seneca,  who  wrote :  "  The  customs  of  this  most  accursed 
race  have  prevailed  to  such  an  extent  that  they  are  every- 
where received.  The  conquered  have  imposed  their  laws 
on  the  conquerors."  ^  Strabo  wrote  :  "  They  have  now  got 
into  every  city,  and  it  is  hard  to  find  a  spot  on  earth 
which  .  .  .  has  not  come  under  their  control."  ^  Harnack 
calculates  that  the  Jews  and  their  converts  formed  7  per 
cent,  of  the  population  of  the  Eoman  Empire,  which  at  the 
beginning  of  the  Christian  era  was  reckoned  at  54  millions. 
He  writes : 

"  In  order  to  comprehend  the  propaganda  and  diffusion 
of  Christianity,  it  is  essential  to  understand  that  the  religion 
under  whose  *  shadow '  it  made  its  way  out  into  the  world 
not  merely  contained  elements  of  vital  significance  but  had 
expanded  till  it  embraced  a  considerable  proportion  of  the 
world's  population."  ^ 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  point  out  that  the  conditions 
under  which  Christian  missionaries  labour  to-day  are  far 
removed  from  those  which  existed  in  the  countries  in 
which  St.  Paul  established  the  earliest  Christian  Churches. 
It  is  clear,  therefore,  that  his  example  affords  no  precedent 
for  leaving  newly  established  Christian  Churches  in  charge 
of  Christians  who  have  had  no  preparation  for  the  fulfil- 

1  Aug.  de  Civ.  Dei,  vi.  p.  11.  2  Josephus,  Ant.  xiv.  2.  7. 

^  Expansion  of  Christianity,  vol.  i.  p.  11, 


16  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

ment  of  their  task  analogous  to  that  which  the  Jewish 
elders  had  inherited  and  received.  In  the  course  of  this 
volume  we  shall  have  occasion  to  refer  to  instances  in 
several  different  lands  and  at  different  epochs  in  which 
those  in  charge  of  missions  have  sought  to  imitate  the 
letter  of  St.  Paul's  example  and  to  note  the  results  which 
ensued.  Christian  missions  have  to  a  large  extent  passed 
out  of  the  empirical  stage,  and  one  of  the  most  certain 
lessons  to  be  deduced  from  their  history  is  that  attempts 
to  imitate  literally  the  example  of  St.  Paul,  and  to  appoint 
as  Christian  ministers  the  best  men  who  may  be  avail- 
able in  a  newly  established  Christian  community,  with- 
out insisting  upon  any  long  course  of  preparation,  are 
destined  to  retard  the  establishment  of  the  Christian 
Church.  Many  parts  of  the  mission  field  contain  ruins 
which  represent  attempts  that  have  been  made  to  build 
the  Church  of  God  by  individuals  who  imagined  that 
they  were  following  primitive  or  Pauline  methods,  but 
who  acted  in  ignorance  or  disregard  of  the  lessons  which 
have  been  taught  by  the  long  experience  of  Christian 
missionaries. 

3.  The  third  problem,  which  is  an  extension  of  the 
second,  is  raised  by  the  question,  At  what  stage  in  the 
evangelization  of  a  non-Christian  country  ought  the 
foreign  missionaries  to  retire  and  to  leave  the  entire 
control  of  the  Church  to  the  Christians  of  the  district  or 
country  ?  One  of  the  most  common  charges  brought 
against  the  representatives  of  foreign  missionary  societies 
is  their  alleged  reluctance  to  hand  over  the  government  of 
a  Church  which  they  have  helped  to  found  to  the  members 
of  that  Church.  Such  charges  are  seldom  if  ever  brought 
by  careful  students  of  missionary  history,  for  whom  the 
failures  of  the  past  act  as  a  warning  against  the  assumption 
that  any  uniform  time  limit  can  be  suggested,  at  the 
expiration  of  which  it  can  be  assumed  that  an  independent 
and  self -governed  Church  ought  to  be  established.  Most 
students  of  missionary  history  will  admit  that  the 
premature   withdrawal  of    European    supervision    has  not 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY   WORK  17 

infrequently  retarded  the  building  up  of  a  Christian  com- 
munity and  the  establishment  of  a  Christian  Church 
that  can  be  considered  worthy  of  the  name.  As  illustra- 
tions of  the  lamentable  results  which  have  followed  the 
withdrawal  of  adequate  European  supervision  we  may 
point  to  the  experience  of  the  C.M.S.  on  the  Niger,  of  the 
S.P.Gr.  in  parts  of  Southern  India  and  Burma,  of  the  W.M.S. 
in  South  Africa,  and  of  the  L.M.S.  in  British  Guiana. 

Before  we  proceed  to  consider  the  development  of 
Christian  missions  in  later  times,  it  is  well  that  we  should 
recall  what  was  the  spiritual  condition  at  the  close  of  the 
first  century  of  seven  of  the  Christian  Churches  in  Asia 
Minor,  one  at  least  of  which  had  been  founded  by  St. 
Paul,  and  all  of  which  must  have  been  influenced  by  him. 
Nor  is  there  any  reason  to  doubt  the  ancient  tradition  that 
they  had  all  been  superintended  during  a  considerable 
number  of  years  by  the  Apostle  St.  John.  The  messages 
transmitted  by  the  writer  of  the  Apocalypse  to  these 
Churches  suggest  that  their  growth  in  the  Christian  life 
was  as  interrupted  and  as  slow  as  that  which  we  observe 
in  the  missionary  Churches  which  have  been  founded 
within  recent  years.  The  Church  at  Ephesus,  where  St. 
Paul  had  laboured  long,  and  where,  according  to  tradi- 
tion, St.  John  had  afterwards  resided,  "  had  left  its  *  first 
love/ "  and  was  urged  to  repent  on  pain  of  having  its 
candlestick  removed.  The  Church  at  Sardis  had  a  name 
to  live  but  was  in  reality  dead,  and  contained  but  few  who 
had  "  not  defiled  their  garments."  The  Church  at  Laodicea 
was  lukewarm,  and  knew  not  that  it  was  "  wretched,  and 
miserable,  and  poor,  and  blind,  and  naked."  To  two  only 
of  the  Seven  Churches  is  a  message  of  encouragement  sent 
unmixed  with  blame. 

The  story  of  these  Churches,  which  were  cared  for  and 
superintended  by  the  apostles  and  their  immediate  suc- 
cessors, should  serve  to  encourage  the  missionary  who 
is  tempted  to-day  to  suppose  that  because  the  lives  of  the 
Christians  amongst  whom  he  has  laboured  are  un-Christlike, 
his  work  cannot  have  been  carried  on  upon  apostolic  lines. 

2 


18  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Political  methods  of  evangelization. 

We  pass  on  now  to  consider  a  method  of  propagating 
the  Christian  religion  which  can  claim  no  support  from  the 
example  of  St.  Paul,  but  which  has  exercised  a  large  in- 
fluence upon  the  development  of  Christian  missions.  We 
refer  to  the  use  of  political  influences  for  the  purpose  of 
facilitating  conversions  to  the  Christian  faith.  Under 
the  term  political  influences  we  include  all  offers  of 
material  inducements  and  threats  of  punishments  or  loss, 
whether  made  by  Governments  or  by  individuals.  The 
change  of  attitude  on  the  part  of  most  Christian  people 
towards  the  employment  of  political  methods  for  the 
spread  of  the  Christian  faith  among  non-Christian  races 
has  been  so  gradual  and  at  the  same  time  so  complete  that 
we  do  not  easily  appreciate  how  far  we  have  travelled 
from  the  standpoint  of  our  forefathers.  From  the  days  of 
Constantine  down  to  a  period  well  within  the  nineteenth 
century  comparatively  few  Christians  would  have  rejected 
the  proposition  that  it  was  lawful,  and  in  many  cases 
advisable,  that  missionaries  should  avail  themselves  of 
political  influences  in  order  to  facilitate  the  prosecution  of 
their  work.  During  the  Middle  Ages  the  writings  of  St. 
Augustine  exercised  a  dominating  influence  over  the 
missionary  policy  of  Christendom.  He  was  not  himself 
distinguished  for  missionary  zeal,  and  apparently  made  no 
attempt  to  organize  any  missionary  enterprise  amongst  the 
heathen  races  in  North-West  Africa.  His  writings,  how- 
ever, include  several  passages  in  which  he  urges  that  the 
pagans  in  Hippo  and  the  surrounding  district  ought  to  be 
punished  with  death  if  they  persisted  in  their  refusal  to 
embrace  the  Christian  faith.^  His  interpretation,  moreover, 
of  the  words  in  the  Parable  of  the  Great  Supper,  "  compel 
them  to  come  in,"  as  affording  authorization  for  the  em- 
ployment of  force  to  compel  an  acknowledgment  of  the 
Christian  faith,  was  accepted  by  most  of  his  readers. 

One   or   two   voices   were    raised   from    time  to   time 

1  Ej)ist.  93.  2,  185.  6. 


METHODS    OF    MISSIONARY    WORK  19 

against  the  policy  of  forcible  conversion,  but  their  protests 
met  with  little  response.  Thus  Eaymond  Lull,  the  first 
missionary  to  Mohammedans  (d.  1315),  wrote: 

"  They  think  they  can  conquer  by  force  of  arms :  it 
seems  to  me  that  the  victory  can  be  won  in  no  other  way 
than  as  Thou,  0  Lord  Christ,  didst  seek  to  win  it,  by  love 
and  prayer  and  self-sacrifice." 

Later  on,  in  the  sixteenth  century.  Las  Casas,  the 
"  Apostle  of  Mexico,"  in  his  treatise  De  unico  vocationis 
modo,  urged  that  men  ought  to  be  brought  to  Christianity 
only  by  persuasion,  and  where  no  special  injury  had  been 
received,  it  was  not  lawful  for  Christians  to  carry  on 
war  against  infidels  merely  on  the  ground  that  they  were 
infidels. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  name  any  country  in  Europe 
apart  from  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  the  conversion  of 
which  to  Christianity  was  not  to  a  large  extent  hastened 
by  the  employment  of  physical  force.  In  the  early  days 
of  Anglican  and  Protestant  missions,  whilst  the  employ- 
ment of  force  was  usually  discouraged,  it  was  thought  to 
be  right  to  make  use  of  material  inducements  in  order  to 
hasten  the  work  of  conversion. 

The  following  extract  from  a  journal  kept  by  Van 
Eiebeek  in  1658  at  Cape  Town  might  be  paralleled  in 
many  other  lands : 

"  April  17. — Began  holding  school  for  the  young  slaves, 
the  chaplain  being  charged  with  the  duty.  To  stimulate 
the  slaves  to  attention  while  at  school,  and  to  induce  them 
to  learn  the  Christian  prayers,  they  were  promised  each  a 
glass  of  brandy  and  two  inches  of  tobacco  when  they  finish 
their  task."  i 

During  the  eighteenth  century  several  missionaries 
wrote  in  defence  of  the  slave  trade,  basing  their  justification 
of  this  trade  upon  the  advantages  which  those  captured 

*  A  History  of  Christian  Missions  in  South  Africa,  by  J.  Du  Plessis, 
p.  30. 


20  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

and  sold  as  slaves  would  eventually  receive  by  being 
brought  into  contact  with  Christian  masters.^ 

An  example,  on  a  large  scale,  of  the  disastrous  results 
of  employing  political  methods  of  spreading  Christianity  is 
afforded  by  the  religious  history  of  Ceylon.  When  the 
Dutch  took  over  from  the  Portuguese  the  island  of  Ceylon 
in  1656,  they  attempted  to  force  a  Protestant  form  of 
Christianity  upon  its  inhabitants  by  subjecting  Buddhists, 
Hindus,  and  Romanists  who  were  not  prepared  to  embrace 
Protestantism,  to  heavy  civil  disabilities.  The  unsatisfactory 
nature  of  the  conversions  so  obtained  was  made  clear  when, 
on  the  cession  of  the  island  to  England  in  1798,  these 
disabilities  were  removed.  In  1801,  soon  after  this  change 
took  place,  there  were  342,000  Singalese  and  136,000 
Tamils  who  professed  Protestant  Christianity ;  but  before 
ten  years  had  elapsed  more  than  half  of  these  had  declared 
themselves  Buddhists  or  had  become  devil-worshippers,  and 
a  large  proportion  of  the  "  Government  religion  "  churches 
were  in  ruins.  The  far-reaching  effects  of  the  policy 
adopted  by  the  Dutch  for  spreading  Christianity  may  be 
inferred  from  the  statement  of  Bishop  Copleston,  formerly 
Bishop  of  Colombo,  who  wrote  a  few  years  ago :  "  Not  till 
within  the  last  twenty  years  has  the  Buddhist- Christian 
element  been  in  the  main  got  rid  of." 

Although  the  principle  of  endeavouring  to  spread  the 
Christian  faith  by  the  direct  offer  of  material  inducements 
is  now  rejected  by  nearly  all  other  missions,  it  is  still 
accepted  by  the  representatives  of  many  Roman  Catholic 
missions. 

To  take  a  single  illustration  which  has  come  under  the 
notice  of  the  writer  :  After  the  Lutheran  and  Anglican 
missions  had  obtained  a  widespread  success  in  the  Chota- 
Nagpur  district  in  North-Eastern  India,  the  Roman 
missionaries,  who  then  appeared  for  the  first  time,  adopted 
the  policy  of  granting  small  loans  to  all  who  were  willing 
to  attend  their  churches,  on  the  understanding  that  these 

*  See  reference  to  pamphlet  published  by  the  Rev.  T.  Thompson,  the 
first  English  missionary  to  Africa,  on  p.  291. 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY   WORK  21 

loans  would  not  be  repayable  as  long  as  those  who  received 
them  continued  to  attend.  The  recipients  include  a  large 
number  of  those  who  were  formerly  attached  to  the 
Lutheran  and  Anglican  missions,  and  the  system  is  in 
working  order  at  the  present  time. 

The  country  in  which  this  principle  has  been  most 
definitely  adopted  and  in  which  it  has  produced  results 
which  have  affected  all  Christian  missions  is  China.  In 
an  elaborate  work,^  which  has  received  the  official  sanction 
of  the  Eoman  Church,  lately  issued  by  the  Foreign  Mission 
Press  of  Hong-Kong,  the  writer  reviews  in  detail  the 
different  methods  that  have  been  adopted  by  missionaries 
in  China.  After  explaining  all  that  can  be  said  for  and 
against  the  adoption  of  political  methods,  he  arrives  at  the 
conclusion  that  interference  by  European  missionaries  in 
Chinese  lawsuits  is  a  means  designed  by  Providence  "  to 
draw  to  religion  the  simple  country  people."  It  is  signifi- 
cant to  find  that  the  writer  who  approves  this  policy  of 
offering  material  inducements  to  non- Christians  in  China 
goes  on  to  deplore  the  fact  that  the  present  prospect  of 
Eoman  Catholic  missions  in  that  country  is  far  from 
encouraging. 

To  Christian  missionaries  the  two  events  of  recent  years 
in  the  Far  East  which  will  appear  of  greatest  importance 
are  the  official  announcement  that  the  Japanese  Govern- 
ment is  prepared  to  recognize  Christianity  as  one  of  the 
three  religions  of  Japan,  Shinto  and  Buddhism  being  the 
other  two,  and  the  appeal  for  prayer  addressed  by  the 
Chinese  Government  to  its  Christian  subjects.  In  both 
cases  the  change  of  attitude  on  the  part  of  the  Government 
concerned  marks  a  new  stage  in  the  spread  of  the  Christian 
faith  over  a  large  part  of  the  non- Christian  world,  and  in 
both  cases  political  and  religious  motives  appear  to  have 
been  inextricably  intermingled.  The  student  of  Christian 
missions  who  is  familiar  with  the  results  which,  in  ancient, 
mediaeval,   and    modern    times    alike,    have    followed    the 

*  Mithode  de   VApostolcU    mocUrne    en    Chine,   p»r  R.   P.  L.    Keryyn, 
Hong-Kong.     Imprimerie  de  la  Socidt^  des  Missions-^trangeres,  1911. 


22  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

employment  of  political  influences  in  support  of  the 
Christian  faith,  will  regard  with  profound  misgivings  the 
possible  exercise  of  such  influences  on  a  wide  scale.  Cases 
are  to  be  found  in  all  parts  of  the  mission  field  in  which 
converts  have  been  induced  to  make  a  profession  of  their 
Christian  faith  in  the  hope  that  they  might  secure  for 
themselves  material  advantages,  and  in  some  instances 
the  responsibility  for  arousing  this  hope  lies  with  the 
missionaries.  The  principle,  however,  of  endeavouring  to 
attract  converts  by  the  offer  of  such  advantages  is  one 
which  has  now  been  abandoned  by  all  non-Eoman 
missionary  societies.  Experience  shows  conclusively  that 
missionary  work  prospers  most  and  that  the  best  types  of 
Christian  character  tend  to  be  produced  when  the  convert 
to  the  Christian  faith  has  to  face  at  least  a  mild  form  of 
persecution.  The  nominal  spread  of  Christianity  through- 
out Europe  which,  in  the  course  of  time,  followed  the 
Edict  of  Milan,  ushered  in  the  "  dark  ages,"  from  which 
Europe  as  a  whole  can  as  yet  hardly  be  said  to  have  com- 
pletely emerged.  No  one  would  desire  that  the  future 
history  of  China  or  Japan  should  afford  any  parallel  to  the 
experience  of  Europe. 

Educational  Missions. 

During  the  last  seventy  years  educational  missions  have 
gradually  taken  the  place  of  the  employment  of  political 
influences  in  a  great  part  of  the  mission  field.  As  will  be 
shown  later  on  in  our  references  to  Dr.  Duff  and  others, 
the  provision  of  colleges,  schools,  and  industrial  institutions 
has  gradually  become  an  important  factor  in  the  situation 
and  has  greatly  affected  the  work  of  the  evangelistic  mis- 
sionary. Missionaries  have  not  always  or  generally  been 
educational  experts,  and  it  is  not  a  matter  for  surprise  that 
the  success  of  the  schools  which  they  have  established  has 
been  by  no  means  uniform. 

Moreover,  in  view  of  the  fact  that  they  are  endeavouring, 
by  means  of  educational  missions,  to  appeal  to  races  which 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY    WORK  23 

differ  in  culture  and  mental  powers  as  much  as  do  the 
Brahmans  of  India  and  the  cannibals  of  the  Pacific,  it  is 
obvious  that  the  educational  methods  which  they  need  to 
adopt  must  admit  of  wide  variation.  Methods  of  teaching 
which  would  be  the  best  possible  in  West  Africa  or  in 
New  Guinea  would  be  worse  than  useless  in  India,  China, 
or  Japan,  and  vice  versa. 

But  though  the  methods  should  vary,  the  principles 
which  underlie  them  must  remain  the  same.  The  object 
which  the  educational  missionary  needs  to  keep  in  view  is 
to  "  educate  " — that  is,  to  draw  out  and  develop  the  latent 
capacities  of  his  pupils  in  order  that  the  additional  know- 
ledge which  he  desires  to  impart  to  them  may  be  correlated 
with  their  previous  knowledge  and  with  their  methods  of 
thinking.  To  accomplish  this  would  be  to  accomplish  one 
of  the  most  difficult  tasks  which  it  is  possible  to  attempt, 
and  it  is  no  cause  for  wonder  that  many  failures  have  to 
be  recorded. 

It  would  be  easy  to  give  illustrations  of  the  disastrous 
results  which  have  followed  the  attempt  to  provide  a 
distinctively  English  education  for  converts  to  Christianity 
who  were  wholly  unfitted  to  benefit  thereby.  The  writer 
of  this  volume  was  sitting  one  day  outside  a  mission  school 
in  the  tropics  watching  its  pupils  walking  to  and  fro  in 
the  mission  enclosure.  Some  of  them  had  come  from 
homes  in  which  it  had  not  been  customary  to  wear  clothes 
and  in  which  cannibalism  would  not  have  been  regarded 
with  horror.  These  pupils  of  the  mission  school,  however, 
wore  immaculate  shirt  fronts  and  the  smartest  of  English 
clothes,  and  carried  gilt-headed  walking  canes  and  watch 
chains  to  correspond.  It  was  with  no  feelings  of  surprise 
that  he  learnt  that  the  principal  English  trading  company  of 
the  district,  which  had  for  several  years  employed  as  clerks 
those  who  had  been  trained  at  this  school,  had  recently 
issued  an  order  that  henceforth  no  one  who  had  attended 
this  school  was  to  be  employed  in  any  capacity,  and  that 
Moslems  or  pagans  were  to  be  employed  in  their  stead. 
Superficial    investigators    of   missionary  work  abroad   are 


24  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

never  tired  of  asserting  that  missionary  education  tends  to 
deprive  converts  of  their  hereditary  virtues  and  to  give 
them  no  others  in  their  place,  and  it  is  impossible  to  deny 
that  in  the  past  there  has  been  some  foundation  for  such 
criticisms.  A  hopeful  symptom  is  that  missionaries  them- 
selves have  become  the  severest,  and  at  the  same  time  the 
most  intelligent,  critics  of  the  methods  which  have  satisfied 
their  predecessors  and  which  continue  to  satisfy  some  of 
their  contemporaries.  They  have  come  to  realize  that  the 
more  anglicized  in  appearance  and  in  methods  of  thought 
and  action  their  pupils  become  the  more  complete  has  been 
their  own  failure.  They  have  also  come  to  realize  that  in 
dealing  with  backward  races  it  is  worse  than  useless  to  try 
to  anticipate  the  results  of  education  by  allowing  to  their 
pupils  a  minimum  of  initiative  and  by  providing  continuous 
supervision.  The  temptation  to  impatience  which  besets 
the  missionary  may  be  described  in  words  borrowed  from 
Dr.  Montessori,  who  writes ; 

"  Little  children  who  are  undertaking  something  for  the 
first  time  are  extremely  slow.  Their  life  is  governed  in 
this  respect  by  laws  especially  different  from  ours.  Little 
children  accomplish  slowly  and  perseveringly  various  com- 
plicated operations  agreeable  to  them,  such  as  dressing  and 
undressing,  setting  the  table,  eating,  etc.  In  all  this  they 
are  extremely  patient,  overcoming  all  the  difficulties  pre- 
sented by  an  organism  still  in  process  of  formation.  But 
we,  on  the  other  hand,  noticing  that  they  are  '  tiring  them- 
selves out,'  or  'wasting  time,'  in  accomplishing  something 
which  we  could  do  in  a  moment,  and  without  the  least 
effort,  put  ourselves  in  the  child's  place  and  do  it  our- 
selves. .  .  .  What  would  become  of  us  if  we  fell  into  the 
midst  of  a  population  of  jugglers  or  of  lightning-change 
impersonators  of  the  variety  hall  ?  What  should  we  do  if, 
as  we  continued  to  act  in  our  usual  way,  we  saw  ourselves 
assailed  by  these  sleight-of-hand  performers,  hustled  into 
our  clothes,  fed  so  rapidly  that  we  could  scarcely  swallow, 
if  everything  we  tried  to  do  was  snatched  from  our  hands 
and  completed  in  a  twinkling  and  we  ourselves  reduced  to 
impotence  and  to  a  humiliating  inertia  ?  Not  knowing  how 
else  to  express  our  confusion,  we  should  defend  ourselves 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY   WORK  25 

with  blows  and  yells  from  these  madmen ;  and  they,  having 
only  the  best  will  in  the  world  to  serve  us,  would  call  us 
haughty,  rebellious,  and  incapable  of  doing  anything."  ^ 

These  words  of  Montessori  help  to  explain  how  extra- 
ordinarily difficult  is  the  problem  that  confronts  mis- 
sionaries, who  are  usually  the  first  representatives  of  the 
more  advanced  races  to  attempt  to  impart  to  the  members 
of  the  more  backward  races  the  education  and  culture 
which  they  have  themselves  inherited.  It  is  not  possible 
to  attempt  here  any  description  of  the  various  forms  of 
educational  missionary  work  which  have  been  tried  in 
different  countries.  For  a  description  and  criticism  of  the 
methods  which  have  been  tried  in  South  Africa  the  student 
would  do  well  to  consult  the  books  written  by  Mr.  Dudley 
Kidd,  also  the  striking  testimony  relating  to  the  benefits 
resulting  from  missionary  education  contained  in  the  report 
of  the  South  African  Government  Commission  (see  p.  335). 

In  India  more  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  mission 
field  the  time  and  labour  of  missionaries  have  been  devoted 
to  educational  work.  In  connection  with  this  work  the 
question  has  often  been  raised  both  by  missionaries  abroad 
and  by  missionary  critics  at  home.  Is  it  worth  while  to  go 
on  spending  time  and  labour  on  the  support  of  educational 
institutions  in  India  and  elsewhere  when  the  labour  spent 
on  them  produces  hardly  any  visible  result,  and  when  men 
and  women  missionaries  are  urgently  needed  to  evangelize 
the  uneducated  classes  who  are  anxious  to  be  taught  the 
Christian  faith  ?  To  answer  this  question  aright,  we  need 
to  be  endowed  with  long  vision ;  we  need  to  look  beyond 
the  immediate  present  and  to  prepare  for  a  future  which 
perhaps  none  living  may  see  but  the  advent  of  which  is 
certain. 

During  a  visit  to  the  chief  centres  of  missionary 
activity  in  India  the  writer  had  an  opportunity  of 
seeing  most  of  the  largest  colleges  which  are  affiliated 
to  universities  in  India,  and  which  belong  to  many 
different  missionary    societies.     In    response    to    inquiries 

^  See  International  Review  of  Missions,  April  1913,  p.  333. 


26  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

addressed  to  those  now  in  charge  of  these  colleges,  he 
gathered  that  the  conversion  and  baptism  of  a  student  in 
any  one  of  them  was  an  exceedingly  rare  event.  The 
Principal  of  one  of  the  largest  colleges  in  North  India  was 
unable  to  tell  of  the  occurrence  of  a  single  case  during  the 
sixteen  years  of  his  principalship.  At  another  college 
belonging  to  a  different  society  two  conversions  had  taken 
place  during  the  last  ten  years  ;  at  another  belonging  to 
yet  another  society  no  conversion  had  occurred  for  at  least 
twelve  years.  When  it  is  remembered  that  there  are  large 
districts  in  India  where  the  missionaries  in  charge  have 
had  to  discourage  applications  from  the  representatives  of 
villages  which  desire  to  abandon  Hinduism  and  to  become 
Christian,  on  the  ground  that  there  are  no  Christian 
teachers,  European  or  Indian,  available,  it  is  impossible  not 
to  sympathize  with  those  who  desire  to  divert  from  the 
educational  missions  a  few  of  those  missionaries  whose  work 
is  attended  with  no  visible  result  and  whose  presence  else- 
where is  urgently  demanded.  Nevertheless,  we  believe 
that  no  more  fatal  policy  can  be  suggested  than  to  weaken 
or  circumscribe  the  appeal  which  the  Church  of  Christ  is 
making  to  the  educated  classes  of  India  by  means  of  its 
educational  missions.  The  great  need  for  men  created  by 
the  success  of  the  mass  movements  supplies  an  argument 
not  for  withdrawing  men  from  educational  work  but  for 
holding  on  to  and  strengthening  this  work.  For  it  is 
certain  that  the  day  will  come  when  Christianity,  having 
overcome  the  opposition  of  caste,  will  spread  throughout 
India  like  a  flood.  It  will  make  all  the  difference  when 
this  movement  occurs  whether  or  no  there  is  then  in 
existence  a  body  of  experienced  European  educationalists 
and  of  highly  educated  Indian  teachers  to  guide  and  direct 
the  movement.  We  can  only  secure  the  provision  of  such 
a  body  of  men  at  the  critical  moment  if  the  various 
missionary  societies  are  content  for  the  time  being  to 
forgo  counting  the  visible  results  of  their  educational 
work  and  hold  on  unhesitatingly  to  the  schools  and  colleges 
which  they  possess. 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY   WORK  27 

Our  impatience  at  the  small  number  of  conversions 
which  can  be  traced  directly  to  the  influence  of  missionary 
schools  and  colleges  will  be  lessened  in  proportion  as  we 
realize  that  their  primary  object  is  not  to  impart  informa- 
tion, or  even  to  produce  conversions,  but  to  develop  char- 
acter. Where  the  education  of  character  is  concerned, 
we  should  be  content  to  count  time  not  by  years  but  by 
generations. 

It  need  hardly  be  added  that  the  principle  which  is 
illustrated  by  what  is  happening  in  India  applies  to  all 
other  non-Christian  countries  in  which  educational  work  on 
any  large  scale  is  being  attempted. 

In  China  the  results  obtained  in  the  missionary 
colleges  (e.g.  in  the  Tientsin  College  under  Dr.  Lavington 
Hart)  have  been  encouraging,  and  the  attitude  of  the 
student  class  towards  the  preaching  of  Christianity  has 
become  remarkably  sympathetic  (see  p.  201). 

In  dealing  with  the  more  backward  races,  experience 
has  demonstrated  the  high  value  to  be  attached  to  all  kinds 
of  industrial  schools.  Amongst  such  races  industrial 
training  can  best  be  imparted  in  conjunction  with  book 
learning.  Thus  the  author  of  The  Story  of  the  Lovedale 
Mission  writes : 

"  It  is  a  fact  abundantly  confirmed  by  experience  that 
the  greatest  diflQculties  in  the  teaching  of  trades  are  to  be 
met  with  in  the  case  of  those  who  are  deficient,  and  just  in 
proportion  as  they  are  deficient,  in  school  education." 

Eeferring  to  the  results  of  the  training  at  Lovedale,  which 
is  the  best  known  centre  of  industrial  training  in  South 
Africa,  Dr.  Stewart,  who  was  for  a  long  period  its  Principal, 
was  able  to  state  that  of  2000  who  had  been  educated 
here,  and  whose  subsequent  history  could  be  traced,  from 
75  to  80  per  cent,  had  led  or  were  leading  useful  and 
industrious  lives. 

We  refer  later  on  to  the  work  of  industrial  missions  in 
various  parts  of  the  mission  field. 


28  HISTORY   OF  CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Medical  Missions. 

A  further  method  by  which  Christian  missionaries  have 
sought  to  appeal  to  non-Christian  races  is  represented  by 
the  establishment  of  medical  missions. 

The  aim  of  the  medical  missionary  is  twofold :  (1)  To 
alleviate  suffering  and  to  train  those  who  in  non-Christian 
lands  are  ignorant  of  the  art  of  medicine  in  order  that 
they  may  be  enabled  to  alleviate  the  sufferings  of  their 
fellow-countrymen.  (2)  To  co-operate  with  the  Christian 
evangelist  by  interpreting  the  Divine  compassion  and 
breaking  down  the  prejudices  of  those  who  would  not  other- 
wise be  willing  to  listen  to  the  gospel  message. 

Some  of  those  who  have  advocated  the  extension  of 
medical  missions  have  laid  exclusive  emphasis  upon  the 
latter  objects,  but  have  failed  to  grasp  the  importance  of 
the  former.  The  charge  given  by  Christ  Himself  to  His 
first  missionaries  was  to  preach  the  gospel  and  to  heal  the 
sick,  but  there  is  nothing  in  the  context  to  suggest  that  in 
places  where  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  was  welcomed 
they  might  consider  themselves  absolved  from  the  obliga- 
tion to  heal  those  who  were  sick.  It  may  with  confidence 
be  asserted  that  apart  altogether  from  any  consideration 
of  the  fact  that  medical  missions  have  proved  a  power- 
ful evangelistic  agency,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  whole 
Christian  Church  to  establish  missions  which  have  as  their 
object  the  alleviation  of  bodily  suffering,  and  that  it  is 
the  duty  of  the  individual  missionary  who  possesses  a 
knowledge  of  medicine  that  is  not  shared  by  any  of  those 
amongst  whom  he  works  to  use  his  knowledge  with 
the  object  of  alleviating  human  suffering,  and  to  continue 
his  labours  with  this  object  in  view  until  such  time 
as  the  medical  practitioners  of  the  country  are  in  a 
position  to  carry  on  the  work  which  he  has  inaugurated. 
When  such  a  time  arrives,  as  it  has  arrived  in  Japan  and 
in  some  other  parts  of  the  mission  field,  the  need  for 
medical  missionaries  will  still  remain  in  so  far  as  their  work 
may  subserve  the  purpose  of  a  direct  missionary  agency. 


METHODS   OF  MISSIONARY   WORK  29 

1.  Confining  our  attention  for  the  moment  to  the  first 
of  the  two  objects  which  medical  missionaries  have  in 
view,  we  may  note  the  striking  service  which  they  were 
able  to  render  to  China  on  the  occasion  of  the  great  out- 
break of  plague  in  Manchuria  in  1910-11.  The  virulence 
of  the  attack  may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  the 
number  of  patients  attacked  and  the  resultant  deaths  alike 
numbered  43,942.^  Had  it  not  been  for  the  medical 
missionaries,  and  the  Chinese  doctors  and  attendants  who 
worked  under  their  direction,  the  deaths  would  have  been 
reckoned  by  millions.  Amongst  those  who  took  part  in 
fighting  the  plague  should  be  mentioned  Dr.  Aspland  of  the 
Anglican  mission  in  Peking,  Dr.  Dugald  Christie  of  the 
United  Presbyterian  mission  in  Moukden,  and  Dr.  A.  P. 
Jackson,  a  new  recruit  belonging  to  the  same  mission,  who 
himself  died  of  the  plague.  On  the  occasion  of  the  death 
of  Dr.  Jackson,  the  Chinese  Viceroy,  Hsi  Liang,  delivered  a 
funeral  oration  at  Moukden  on  February  2,  1911,  in  the 
course  of  which  he  said : 

"  Our  sorrow  is  beyond  all  measure,  our  grief  too  deep 
for  words.  0  spirit  of  Dr.  Jackson,  we  pray  you  intercede 
for  the  20,000,000  people  in  Manchuria,  and  ask  the  Lord  of 
heaven  to  take  away  this  pestilence,  so  that  we  may  once 
more  lay  our  heads  in  peace  upon  our  pillows.  In  life  you 
were  brave,  in  death  you  are  an  exalted  spirit.  Noble  spirit, 
who  sacrificed  your  life  for  us,  help  us  still  and  look  down 
in  kindness  upon  us  all." 

To  the  list  of  the  medical  missionaries  who  have  died 
whilst  fighting  the  plague,  albeit  in  a  different  country, 
may  be  added  the  name  of  Dr.  Alice  Marval  of  the  S.P.G., 
who  died  at  Cawnpore,  January  4,  1904. 

By  way  of  illustrating  the  efforts  which  medical 
missionaries  are  making  to  train  men  and  women  in  non- 

*  For  a  description  of  the  kind  of  work  accomplished  by  medical 
missionaries  during  the  outbreak  of  plague  in  Manchuria,  see  The  Claim  of 
Suffering,  by  E.  K.  Paget,  pp.  79-84  ;  also  The  Life  of  Arthur  Jacksm,  by 
A.  J.  Costain. 


30  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Christian  lands  to  alleviate  the  physical  sufferings  of  theil 
fellow-countrymen,  we  may  mention  the  central  training 
colleges  which  have  recently  been  established  in  China 
and  elsewhere. 

At  the  triennial  conference  of  the  Medical  Missionary 
Association  held  in  Peking  (January  1913),  it  was  urged 
that  combined  efforts  should  be  made  to  strengthen  existing 
hospitals  in  which  Chinese  might  be  trained  to  become 
fully  qualified  medical  missionaries. 

One  of  the  most  successful  medical  training  colleges  is 
the  Union  Medical  College  in  Peking,  which  is  supported 
jointly  by  the  American  Board  (A.B.C.F.M.),  the  L.M.S.  and 
the  S.P.G.  This  hospital,  besides  ministering  to  the  needs 
of  Chinese  patients,  is  turning  out  year  by  year  a  number 
of  qualified  Chinese  doctors  who  will  carry  the  fame  of 
European  medicine  and  a  sympathetic  report  of  the  Christian 
faith  far  and  wide  throughout  the  Empire  of  China.  A 
hospital  on  similar  lines  has  been  started  in  Shanghai. 

Another  combined  hospital  and  medical  school,  which 
is  supported  by  missions  connected  with  several  different 
denominations,  is  the  Severance  hospital  outside  Seoul,  the 
capital  of  Corea.  This  was  started  by  the  Presbyterian 
mission,  but  its  staff  includes  representatives  of  the  S.P.G. , 
the  A.M.E.C.,  and  other  societies.  Thirty  fully  qualified 
Corean  doctors  have  already  been  trained  here.  It  is  in 
fact  due  to  the  influence  exerted  by  this  hospital  that 
vaccination  has  been  introduced  into  almost  every  village 
in  Corea,  with  the  result  that  smallpox,  which  has  been 
one  of  the  greatest  plagues  of  Corea,  has  been  checked,  and 
may  ere  long  be  exterminated. 

An  important  step  towards  the  education  of  Indian 
women  who  may  become  medical  missionaries  was  taken 
in  1894,  when  the  North  India  School  of  Medicine  for 
Christian  Women  was  founded  at  Ludhiana  in  the  Punjab, 
the  two  first  teachers  being  Dr.  Edith  Brown  and  Miss 
Greenfield. 

2.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  quote  instances  in  which 
the  medical  missionaries  have,  by  the  exercise  of  their  art, 


METHODS   OF    MISSIONARY    WORK  31 

gained  for  themselves  or  for  others  the  opportunity  to 
explain  and  commend  the  Christian  faith.  In  the  case  of 
Corea  it  was  the  work  of  a  medical  missionary  which  laid 
the  foundation  of  Protestant  missions  in  that  land. 

"Up  to  1884  no  mission  work  had  been  possible,  the 
rulers  and  people  being  determined  to  exclude  all  mission- 
aries. In  the  autumn  of  that  year,  however,  Dr.  Allen,  an 
American  medical  missionary,  was  deputed  to  attempt  an 
entry  into  Corea.  He  could  only  do  so  by  becoming 
physician  to  the  American  Legation  at  Seoul.  For  some 
time  no  opportunity  presented  itself.  Then  one  night  there 
occurred  a  riot,  during  which  the  nephew  of  the  king — 
Prince  Min  Yong  Ik — was  seriously  wounded.  Dr.  Allen 
was  summoned  to  attend  him,  and  when  he  arrived  found 
about  thirteen  of  the  native  doctors,  who  were  trying  to 
staunch  the  bleeding  wounds  by  filling  them  with  wax. 
They  gazed  in  amazement  as  the  medical  missionary  secured 
the  bleeding  vessels,  and  cleansed  and  sutured  the  wounds. 
Dr.  Allen,  by  this  successful  application  of  medical  skill, 
not  only  occasioned  a  revolution  in  the  medical  treatment 
of  that  country,  but  also  obtained  a  marvellous  vantage- 
ground  for  carrying  on  missionary  work.  The  then  Govern- 
ment of  Corea  subscribed  for  the  building  of  a  hospital  for 
Dr.  Allen,  which  was  established  under  royal  patronage,  and 
where  not  only  the  healing  of  the  sick  was  carried  on,  but 
also  the  preaching  of  the  gospel.  Other  missionaries  were 
allowed  to  settle  in  Corea ;  the  people  showed  confidence  in 
them,  and  to-day  this  once-closed  land  has  been  the  scene 
of  some  of  the  most  splendid  triumphs  of  the  Cross,  as  the 
direct  outcome  of  the  work  of  medico-evangelism."  ^ 

One  further  illustration  may  be  given  of  the  influence 
which  the  medical  missionary  may  exert  in  a  non-Christian 
land.  During  the  Boxer  rebellion  a  small  mission  hospital 
was  attacked  by  an  infuriated  mob  crying,  "  Death  to  the 
foreign  devils  ! "  The  doctor  and  evangelist  went  out  and 
faced  the  mob,  requesting  that  the  Chinese  patients  in  the 
hospital  might  be  spared.  The  leader  of  the  mob  said : 
"  I  have  been  told  you  can  work  miracles  here ;  if  you  can 
prove  that,  all  your  lives  will  be    spared."     A  voice   at 

*  TTu  Appeal  of  Medical  Missions,  by  R.  F.  Moorshead,  p.  73  f. 


32  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

once  replied  from  the  mob :  "  They  can.  Six  years  ago  I 
was  blind ;  that  doctor  there  gave  me  back  my  sight." 
The  leader  at  once  drew  off  his  followers,  and  left  the 
mission  hospital  and  its  inmates  in  peace. 

"  Who  could  doubt  such  love,  or  be  unwilling  to  trust 
such  a  Saviour  ? "  was  the  exclamation  of  a  poor  Chinese 
woman  whose  body  had  been  healed  and  whose  soul  had 
been  won  to  Christ  in  a  mission  hospital.  "  We  have  been 
loved  into  heaven  by  the  love  and  mercy  of  the  doctors 
and  nurses,  and  we  have  given  our  souls  to  Christ,  who 
sent  them  here  to  save  us,"  was  the  answer  given  by  an 
Arab  mother  regarding  her  daughter  and  herself,  who  had 
formerly  been  Mohammedans,  when  asked  by  a  Scottish 
doctor  why  they  had  become  Christians. 

A  Brahmin  woman  who  had  bitterly  opposed  the 
work  of  Christian  missionaries,  after  being  treated  in  a 
mission  hospital,  exclaimed,  "  I  was  against  them  once,  but 
I  know  now  what  love  means." 

Similar  testimonies  and  results  might  be  quoted  from 
every  land  where  medical  missionaries  have  worked.  The 
C.M.S.  mission  at  Srinagar  in  Kashmir,  which  is  now  one 
of  the  most  successful  in  India,  was  started  by  a  medical 
missionary,  Dr.  Elmslie,  in  1865, after  several  unsuccessful 
attempts  to  preach  the  Christian  faith  had  been  made  by 
other  missionaries.  The  United  Presbyterian  mission  at 
Jeypore  in  Kajputana  was  the  result  of  a  successful  treat- 
ment by  a  medical  missionary.  Dr.  Valentine,  of  the  wife 
of  the  Maharajah. 

And  if  the  results  from  the  missionary  standpoint 
which  have  been  achieved  by  the  work  of  men  doctors 
have  been  great,  greater  far  have  been  the  results  produced 
by  the  work  of  women  doctors.  No  language  can  describe 
the  appalling  needs  of  India's  zenanas,  where  women  die 
in  countless  thousands  or  linger  on  in  helpless  misery  for 
lack  of  medical  assistance.  To  such,  the  woman  missionary 
doctor  comes  as  an  angel  from  God,  and  the  physical 
health  which  she  brings  is  often  the  precursor  of  the 
spiritual  health  which  she  longs  equally  to  impart. 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY   WORK  33 

The  results  achieved  by  medical  missionaries  in  all 
lands  cannot  be  better  described  than  in  the  words  of  a 
Brahman  who  addressed  a  meeting  at  Arcot  which  had 
been  summoned  by  the  American  Arcot  Mission  : 

"  I  have  watched  the  missionaries,  and  seen  what  they 
are.  What  have  they  come  to  this  country  for  ?  What 
tempts  them  to  leave  their  parents,  friends,  and  country, 
and  come  to  this,  to  them,  unhealthy  clime  ?  Is  it  for  gain 
or  profit  they  come  ?  Some  of  us,  country  clerks  in 
Government  offices,  receive  larger  salaries  than  they.  Is  it 
for  an  easy  life  ?  See  how  they  work,  and  then  tell  me. 
Look  at  this  missionary  !  He  came  here  a  few  years  ago, 
leaving  all,  and  seeking  only  our  good  !  He  was  met  with 
cold  looks  and  suspicious  glances,  and  was  shunned  and 
maligned.  He  sought  to  talk  with  us  of  what  he  told  us 
was  the  matter  of  most  importance  in  heaven  and  earth, 
but  we  would  not  listen.  He  was  not  discouraged  :  he 
opened  a  dispensary,  and  we  said,  *  Let  the  pariahs  [lowest 
caste  people]  take  his  medicines,  we  won't ' ;  but  in  the  time 
of  our  sickness  and  distress  and  fear  we  were  glad  to  go  to 
him,  and  he  welcomed  us.  We  complained  at  first  if  he 
walked  through  our  Brahmin  streets,  but  ere  long,  when 
our  wives  and  daughters  were  in  sickness  and  anguish,  we 
went  and  begged  him  to  come,  even  into  our  inner  apart- 
ments; and  he  came,  and  our  wives  and  daughters  now 
smile  upon  us  in  health  !  Has  he  made  money  by  it  ? 
Even  the  cost  of  the  medicine  he  has  given  us  has  not  been 
returned  to  him. 

"  Now  what  is  it  that  makes  him  do  all  this  for  us  ?  It  is 
his  Bible  !  I  have  looked  into  it  a  good  deal,  at  one  time  or 
another,  in  the  different  languages  I  chance  to  know — it  is 
just  the  same  in  all  languages.  The  Bible  ! — there  is  nothing 
to  compare  with  it,  in  all  our  sacred  books,  for  goodness, 
and  purity,  and  holiness,  and  love,  and  for  motives  of  action. 
Where  did  the  English  people  get  all  their  intelligence  and 
energy,  and  cleverness  and  power  ?  It  is  their  Bible  that 
gives  it  to  them.  And  now  they  bring  it  to  us  and  say, 
'  That  is  what  raised  us ;  take  it  and  raise  yourselves.' 
They  do  not  force  it  upon  us,  as  did  the  Mohammedans 
with  their  Koran,  but  they  bring  it  in  love,  and  translate  it 
into  our  languages,  and  lay  it  before  us,  and  say,  '  Look  at  it, 
read  it,  examine  it,  and  see  if  it  is  not  good.'  Of  one  thing 
I  am  convinced :  do  what  we  will,  oppose  it  as  we  may,  it 


34  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

is  the  Christian's  Bible  that  will,  sooner  or  later,  work  the 
regeneration  of  our  land."  * 

The  Development  of  Medical  Missions. 

Although  it  does  not  appear  that  the  Jesuits  sent  out 
qualified  doctors  to  act  as  medical  missionaries,  it  often 
happened  that  some  of  their  missionaries  possessed  a 
serviceable  knowledge  of  medicine  which  they  used  to  good 
effect.  Thus  Professor  Okakura  Yoshisaburo  of  Japan 
writes : 

"  In  1568  Oda  Nabunaga  gave  a  plot  of  ground  of  about 
ten  acres  in  Kyoto  to  build  a  Christian  church.  .  .  .  Two 
Jesuit  priests  who  served  the  church,  being  well  versed  in 
the  practice  of  medicine,  built  wards  on  the  premises, 
where  poor  patients  were  invited  and  treated  free  of  charge. 
Nabunaga  also  gave  them  an  area  of  about  1200  acres  in  the 
province  of  Omi,  where  three  thousand  kinds  of  medical 
plants  were  transplanted,  the  artemisia  vulgaris  still  used  in 
cauterization  being  supposed  to  be  one  of  them."  ^ 

We  have  referred  elsewhere  to  the  presence  at  the 
court  of  Japan  of  a  Christian  physician  during  the  first 
part  of  the  eighth  century. 

China. — The  first  medical  missionary  to  China  of  whom 
much  is  known  was  Bernard  Ehodes,  who  was  born  in 
1644  at  Lyons.  Having  studied  medicine  and  surgery,  he 
entered  a  religious  Order  as  a  lay  brother,  and  eventually 
went  to  China,  where  he  lived  for  sixteen  years  and  died 
near  Peking  in  1715.  He  attended  all  ranks  of  Chinese, 
from  the  Emperor  downwards.  Father  Karenni  in  a  letter 
written  from  Peking  in  1715  gives  a  graphic  account  of 
the  widespread  influence  that  he  exerted  and  of  the 
affection  with  which  the  Chinese  regarded  him.^ 

In  1820  Dr.  Livingstone,  who  was  in  the  employ  of 
the   East   India   Company  and    was    stationed  at  Macao, 

*  Medical  Missions,  their  Place  and  Power,  by  J.  Lowe,  p.  115  f. 

*  The  Life  and  Thought  of  Jajmn,  1913,  p.  109. 

*  See  Lettres  Edifiantes  et  Curieuses,  vol.  xiv.  p.  431, 


METHODS    OF   MISSIONARY   WORK  35 

opened  a  dispensary  for  the  benefit  of  poor  Chinese,  in 
connection  with  which  Dr.  Morrison  acted  as  inter- 
preter and  endeavoured  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the 
patients. 

The  first  medical  missionary  in  modern  times  to  reach 
China  was  the  Eev.  Peter  Parker,  M.D.,  who  arrived 
in  1835  and  was  supported  by  the  American  Board  of 
Missions.  His  hospital  at  Hong-Kong  attracted  patients 
from  far  and  near.  In  1839  Dr.  Lockhart  of  the  L.M.S. 
started  work  at  Macao  and  was  joined  the  same  year  by 
Dr.  Hobson.  Dr.  Lockhart  eventually  undertook  work  at 
Shanghai  and  Dr.  Hobson  at  Hong-Kong. 

Amongst  the  medical  missionaries  who  reached  China 
during  the  next  thirty  years  were  the  Eev.  Hudson  Taylor 
(founder  of  the  China  Inland  Mission),  W.  Gauld  and 
James  Maxwell  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  England, 
and  F.  Porter  Smith  of  the  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary 
Society.  In  1890  the  number  of  medical  missionaries  in 
China  had  risen  to  125  and  in  1913  to  435  (see  p.  203). 

The  S.P.G.  may  perhaps  claim  to  have  been  the 
first  missionary  society  or  organization  to  attempt  to 
train  or  send  out  medical  missionaries.  By  his  will,  dated 
February  22,  1703,  General  Codrington  bequeathed  to 
the  S.P.G.  his  two  plantations  in  Barbados,  one  of  the 
conditions  being  that  a  convenient  number  of  professors 
and  scholars  should  be  maintained  there  who  should  be 
"  obliged  to  study  and  practise  Phisick  and  Chirurgery  as 
well  as  Divinity,"  so  that  they  might  "  both  endear  them- 
selves to  the  people  and  have  the  better  opportunities  of 
doing  good  to  men's  souls  whilst  they  were  taking  care  of 
their  bodys."  ^  As  soon  as  the  society  obtained  possession 
of  the  estates  (in  1712),  superintendence  of  "  the  sick  and 
maimed  negroes  and  servants "  was  undertaken  by  a 
missionary  (Eev.  J.  Holt)  skilled  "  in  physic  and  surgery," 
"a  chest  of  medicines  to  the  value  of  £30  being  supplied 
him."  As  a  result  of  the  labours  of  Mr.  Holt  and  his 
successors,    the    report    for     1740    records     that    "some 

1  See  p.  396,  also  Two  Hundred  Years  of  the  S.P.G.f^.  816  a. 


36  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

hundreds  of  negroes  have  been  brought  to  our  Holy 
Eeligion,  and  there  are  now  not  less  than  seventy  Christian 
negroes  on  those  Plantations." 

This  was,  however,  the  only  organized  medical  mission- 
ary work  undertaken  by  the  S.P.G.  during  the  eighteenth 
century. 

The  first  medical  missionary  whom  this  society  sent 
out  in  the  nineteenth  century  was  the  Kev.  (afterwards 
Bishop)  F.  T.  McDougall,  F.E.C.S.,  who  began  work  in 
Borneo  in  1848.  Amongst  other  Anglican  bishops  who 
have  been  fully  qualified  medical  missionaries  may  be 
mentioned  Dr.  H.  Callaway,  who  began  work  in  Kaffraria 
in  1855;  Dr.  Strachan,  Bishop  of  Eangoon ;  Dr.  Smyth, 
Bishop  of  Lebombo ;  and  Dr.  Hine,  Bishop  of  Nyasa. 

The  London  Society  for  Promoting  Christianity  amongst 
the  Jews  may  perhaps  claim  to  have  been  the  first  society 
to  send  out  medical  missionaries  with  the  intention  that 
the  missionaries  should  devote  practically  their  whole  time 
to  the  practice  of  medicine.  This  society  sent  out  Dr. 
George  Clarke  to  Gibraltar  in  1823,  and  Dr.  George  Dalton 
in  1824  to  Jerusalem. 

India. — Medical  missions  in  India,  in  the  modern 
sense  of  the  term,  date  from  1783,  when  John  Thomas, 
a  ship  s  surgeon,  commenced  missionary  work  in  Bengal. 
After  itinerating  for  three  years  in  the  Malda  district,  and 
translating  part  of  the  New  Testament  into  Bengali,  he 
returned  to  England  in  1792,  and  having  offered  his 
services  to  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society,  was  sent  out 
as  a  companion  to  Carey  in  1793.  Though  he  was  an 
eccentric  person,  and  had  to  be  confined  for  some  time  in 
an  asylum,  he  laboured  strenuously  to  promote  the  cause 
of  Christian  missions.  He  died  in  1801,  and  had  uo 
successor  till  1838,  when  Mr.  Archibald  Eamsay  began 
medical  work  in  Travancore.  In  1852  the  L.M.S.  sent 
out  Dr.  Leitch,  who  was  drowned  two  years  later,  but 
whose  work  inaugurated  the  large  and  successful  medical 
mission  which  the  L.M.S.  has  since  developed  at  Neyoor 
in  South  India.     About  the  same  time  the  American  Board 


METHODS    OF    MISSIONARY    WORK  37 

of  Missions  sent  out  Dr.  John  Scudder,  who  laboured  first 
in  Ceylon  and  afterwards  in  Madras. 

In  1856  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland  sent  its  first 
medical  missionary,  Dr.  David  Paterson,  to  Madras. 

The  Church  of  England  Zenana  Missionary  Society 
sent  the  first  woman  doctor  to  India  (Dr.  Fanny  Butler) 
in  1880. 

The  S.P.G.  began  medical  missionary  work  in  1870  at 
Nazareth  in  Tinnevelly,  and  Dr.  Strachan,  its  first  medical 
missionary,  afterwards  became  Bishop  of  Eangoon. 

As  a  development  of  Mrs.  Winter's  work  at  Delhi, 
which  was  begun  in  1863,  the  first  hospital  for  women 
and  children  in  India  was  established  in  connection  with 
the  S.P.Gr.  mission  to  Delhi.  The  work  grew  steadily  till 
the  foundation  of  St.  Stephen's  Hospital  in  the  central 
street  of  Delhi  in  1884.  In  1906  the  new  St.  Stephen's 
Hospital  was  founded  outside  the  walls. 

The  Zenana  Bible  and  Medical  Mission  (1852),  which 
is  an  undenominational  society,  supports  the  Victoria 
Hospital  at  Benares,  the  Duchess  of  Teck  Hospital  at 
Patna,  the  Kinnaird  Memorial  Hospital  at  Lucknow,  and 
a  hospital  at  Nasik  in  Western  India  which  was  presented 
by  local  Brahmans.  For  further  details  in  regard  to  the 
hospitals  and  medical  missions  which  are  scattered  through- 
out India,  see  p.  131.  The  total  number  of  qualified 
medical  missionaries  in  India  was  140  in  1895,  281  in 
1905,and  335  in  1912. 

Medical  Missions  to  Moslems. 

It  has  been  the  well-nigh  universal  experience  of 
missionaries  who  have  worked  amongst  Moslems  that  the 
best,  and  often  the  only,  way  by  which  a  successful  appeal 
can  be  made  is  by  means  of  medical  missions.  The 
experience  of  Dr.  Pennell  on  the  borders  of  Afghanistan, 
Dr.  W.  Miller  in  Northern  Nigeria,  and  many  others,  is 
the  same,  namely,  that  the  prejudices  of  Moslems  against 
the  Christian  faith  can  best  be  combated  by  the  practical 


38  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

demonstration  of  the  love  of  Jesus  Christ  which  is  em- 
bodied in  a  medical  mission. 

One  reason  why  medical  missions  appeal  so  strongly  to 
Moslems  is  that  in  many  cases  their  knowledge  of  medicine 
and  surgery  is  so  deficient  that  it  can  only  be  compared 
with  that  of  heathen  or  pagans.  Even  in  Moslem  lands 
which  have  long  been  in  touch  with  European  influence 
and  science  the  knowledge  of  medicine  has  lagged  behind 
the  knowledge  of  all  other  subjects.^ 

Four  doctors  and  four  nurses  were  sent  out  by  the 
Dutch  Church,  twenty  years  ago,  to  the  Dutch  East  Indies. 
One  of  the  Scotch  doctors  who  visited  the  scene  of  their 
work  in  1912  wrote  home  as  follows : 

"  I  find  here  over  30,000  converts  from  Islam,  all  the 
work  of  four  doctors  and  four  nurses.  And  these  men  and 
women  are  living  better  Christian  lives  than  the  vast  bulk 
of  our  Christians  at  home." 


Women's  Work  in  the  Mission  Field. 

Our  failure  to  describe  in  detail  the  share  which 
women  have  taken  in  the  work  of  Christian  missions  is 
due  to  no  want  of  appreciation  of  the  supremely  important 
part  which  they  have  played  in  the  past  and  are  destined 
to  play  in  the  future  in  all  parts  of  the  mission  field.     The 

^  An  illustration  of  this  may  be  found  in  a  series  of  questions  and 
answers  which  were  published  by  the  Lancet,  July  16,  1898.  The  questions 
to  which  the  answers  were  appended  had  been  addressed  by  the  French 
Statistical  Department  to  the  Pasha  of  Damascus. 

'*  ^.  What  is  the  deatb-rate  per  thousand  in  your  principal  city? 
A.  In  Damascus  it  is  the  will  of  Allah  that  all  must  die — some  die  old, 
some  young.  Q.  What  is  the  annual  number  of  births  ?  A.  We  do  not 
know  ;  God  alone  can  say.  Q.  Are  the  supplies  of  drinking  water  sufficient 
and  of  good  quality  ?  A.  From  the  remotest  period  no  one  has  ever  died  of 
thirst.  Q,  General  remarks  on  the  hygienic  conditions  of  your  city. 
A.  Since  Allah  sent  us  Mohammed,  His  prophet,  to  purge  the  world  with 
fire  and  sword,  there  has  been  a  vast  improvement.  But  there  still  remains 
much  to  do.  And  now,  my  lamb  of  the  West,  cease  your  questioning,  which 
can  do  no  good  either  to  you  or  to  anyone  else.  Man  should  not  bother  him- 
self about  matters  which  concern  only  God.     Salaam  aleikum." 


METHODS    OP   MISSIONARY    WORK  39 

future  status  of  women  for  many  years  to  come  in  non- 
Christian  lands  will  depend  to  a  very  large  extent  upon  the 
ability  of  missionary  societies  to  send  out  into  the  mission 
field  an  increased  staff  of  highly  qualified  Christian  women. 
The  suffragist  and  suffragette  societies  at  home  would  be 
amongst  the  strongest  supporters  of  missionary  work 
could  they  but  reahze  that  the  work  accomplished  by 
these  has  done  more  towards  effecting  the  emancipation 
and  uplifting  of  women  than  all  other  societies  or  political 
organizations  in  the  world.  To  two-thirds  of  the  women 
now  living  in  the  world  Christian  missions  hold  out  the 
only  immediate  prospect  of  raising  their  social  status. 
No  religion  other  than  Christianity  inculcates  the  doctrine 
that  women  are  the  equals  of  men  and  should  be  accorded 
equal  freedom  and  equal  opportunities  of  education.  Their 
future  is  therefore  inseparably  connected  with  the  diffusion 
and  acceptance  of  the  teaching  of  Christianity. 

More  than  half  the  women  now  living  in  the  British 
Empire  are  Hindus.  This  fact  adds  point  to  the  words 
uttered  by  a  well-known  Brahman  in  India  who  said  that 
among  the  countless  divisions  and  sects  of  Hinduism  the 
only  two  things  on  which  all  Hindus  are  agreed  are  the 
sanctity  of  the  cow  and  the  depravity  of  woman.  "We 
note  with  joy  the  isolated  efforts  which  have  so  far  been 
made  by  Hindus  and  Moslems  to  imitate  the  actions  of  the 
Christian  missionaries  and  to  agitate  for  the  emancipation 
of  their  women,  but  without  the  support  of  Christian 
teaching  and  the  inspiration  of  Christian  love  it  is  im- 
possible that  these  efforts  should  obtain  their  true  fruition. 

To  appreciate  the  nature  of  the  problem  which  con- 
fronts those  who  desire  to  uplift  India's  women,  we  need  to 
remind  ourselves  that  there  are  40,000,000  Indian  women 
confined  in  zenanas,  that  there  are  26,000,000  widows, 
335,000  of  whom  are  under  fifteen  years  of  age  and 
111,000  under  ten,  that  not  one  woman  in  100  in  India 
can  read,  and  that  only  one  in  100  of  girls  of  school- 
going  age  are  at  school.  How  difficult  it  is  for  the 
enlightened  Hindus  to  win  over  their  fellow-countrymen 


40  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

to  the  institution  of  any  radical  reforms  may  be  gathered 
from  the  fact  that  the  teaching  of  their  sacred  books 
strongly  supports  the  treatment  of  women  which  is  at 
present  in  vogue.  Thus  their  great  law-giver,  Manu,  whose 
teaching  is  accepted  by  nearly  all  orthodox  Hindus,  can  be 
quoted  by  those  opposed  to  reform  as  having  said :  "  Day 
and  night  must  women  be  kept  in  dependence  by  the  male 
members  of  the  family ;  they  are  never  fit  for  independence  ; 
they  are  as  impure  as  falsehood  itself:  that  is  a  fixed 
rule."  1 

The  need  for  transforming  the  life  of  women  by  im- 
parting to  them  the  teaching  of  Jesus  Christ  is  as  real  in 
other  countries  as  it  is  in  India. 

Few,  if  any,  English  women  outside  the  ranks  of  the 
missionaries  have  had  so  wide  an  experience  of  the  con- 
ditions under  which  women  in  India  and  the  Far  East  live 
as  the  famous  traveller,  Mra,  Bishop.  Speaking  of  the 
influence  which  the  religions  of  these  countries  exert  upon 
women,  she  said : 

"  Just  one  or  two  remarks  as  to  what  these  false  faiths 
do.  They  degrade  women  with  an  infinite  degradation.  I 
have  lived  in  zenanas  and  harems,  and  have  seen  the  daily 
life  of  the  secluded  women,  and  I  can  speak  from  bitter 
experience  of  what  their  lives  are — the  intellect  dwarfed,  so 
that  the  woman  of  twenty  or  thirty  years  of  age  is  more 
like  a  child  of  eight  intellectually;  while  all  the  worst 
passions  of  human  nature  are  stimulated  and  developed  to 
a  fearful  degree ;  jealousy,  envy,  murderous  hate,  intrigue, 
running  to  such  an  extent  that  in  some  countries  I  have 
hardly  been  in  a  woman's  house  or  near  a  woman's  tent 
without  being  asked  for  drugs  with  which  to  disfigure  the 
favourite  wife,  to  take  away  her  life,  or  to  take  away  the 
life  of  the  favourite  wife's  infant  son.  This  request  has 
been  made  to  me  nearly  two  hundred  times."  ^ 

The  Indian  zenana  was  first  penetrated  in  the  name  of 
Christ  by  the  wife  of  a  missionary  sixty  years  ago  whcD 

1  Manu,  ix,  2,  3,  18. 

2  Speech  at  Exeter  Hall,  November  1,  1893. 


METHODS   OF   MISSIONARY    WORK  41 

asked  to  visit  a  Hindu  woman  who  was  dying,  and  who  had 
been  in  secret  a  reader  of  the  Christian  Bible.  The  sequel 
of  this  visit  was  the  establishment  in  London  in  1852  of 
the  Zenana  Bible  and  Medical  Mission,  which  supports 
more  than  30  stations  and  a  number  of  well-equipped 
hospitals  for  women  (see  p.  132).  Miss  Swain  was 
apparently  the  first  woman  to  become  a  qualified  medical 
missionary  (1870).  The  number  of  qualified  women  doctors 
in  the  mission  field  is  now  nearly  400. 

Another  sphere  of  women's  work  in  the  mission  field  is 
afforded  by  the  demand  for  qualified  nurses.  It  is  encourag- 
ing to  know  that  during  the  last  ten  years  700  nurses  have 
joined  the  Nurses'  Missionary  League,  thereby  declaring 
their  intention,  if  God  permit,  to  become  missionaries,  and 
that  of  this  number  230  are  already  (1914)  at  work 
abroad. 

The  number  of  unmarried  women  missionaries  now 
at  work  is  nearly  7000.  Of  these  2700  come  from 
the  U.S.A.  and  about  the  same  number  from  Great  Britain. 
The  remainder  are  connected  with  continental  societies. 

The  work  which  women  missionaries  have  accomplished 
in  the  mission  field  will  be  referred  to  again  and  again  in 
the  sections  relating  to  different  countries,  but  nothing 
which  can  be  said  will  give  the  supporters  of  missions  an 
adequate  idea  of  the  important  part  which  women  are 
playing  in  the  spread  of  Christian  missions  and  of  the 
supreme  importance  of  extending  their  work. 


III. 

THE  DAWN  OF  MODERN  MISSIONS  * 
(1580-1750). 

During  the  two  centuries  preceding  the  Eeformation 
hardly  any  attempt  was  made  to  evangelize  the  non- 
Christian  world,  and  nearly  two  centuries  elapsed  after 
the  Eeformation  before  the  Churches  of  Europe  which  had 
the  open  Bible  in  their  hands  realized  that  it  was  their  duty 
to  impart  the  knowledge  of  its  contents  to  the  heathen. 
Some  of  the  leaders  in  the  Eeformation  movements  were 
so  far  from  initiating  missionary  work  abroad  that  they 
regarded  all  such  work  as  useless  or  even  wrong. 

Thus  Luther  (1483-1546)  in  his  Table  Talk  says  :  "  The 
arts  are  growing  as  if  there  was  to  be  a  new  start  and  the 
world  was  to  become  young  again.  .  .  .  Another  hundred 
years  and  all  will  be  over.  God's  Word  will  disappear  for 
want  of  any  to  preach  it.  .  .  .  Asia  and  Africa  have  no 
gospel.  In  Europe,  Greeks,  Italians,  Spaniards,  Hungarians, 
French,  English,  Poles  have  no  gospel."  "  The  small 
Electorate  of  Saxony  will  not  hinder  the  end,"  he  replied 
to  one  who  observed  that  when  Christ  came  there  would  be 
no  faith  at  all  on  the  earth,  and  that  the  gospel  was  still 
believed  in  that  part  of  Germany. 

Zwingli  (1484-1531),  whilst  admitting  that  the  gospel 
must  continue  to  spread  throughout  the  world,  makes  no 
suggestion  that  it  is  the  duty  of  the  Church  to  send  out 

^  This  chapter  contains  a  brief  sketch  of  missionary  work  other  than  that 
connected  with  the  R.C.  Church  up  to  1750.  A  further  account  of  the  work 
to  which  reference  is  made  will  be  found  under  the  headings  of  the  various 
countries  in  which  the  work  was  attempted. 

42 


THE   DAWN   OF   MODERN   MISSIONS  43 

missionaries.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  he  maintained 
that  pious  heathens  would  be  saved  who  died  without  a 
knowledge  of  the  gospel. 

Calvin  (150  9—1 564)  held  that  any  special  agency  for  the 
conversion  of  the  heathen  is  needless,  for,  as  he  wrote,  "  we 
are  taught  that  the  kingdom  of  Christ  is  neither  to  be 
advanced  nor  maintained  by  the  industry  of  men,  but  this 
is  the  work  of  God  alone." 

In  1535  Erasmus,  who  was  not  definitely  associated 
with  the  Eeformation  movements,  had  urged  in  the 
strongest  language  the  duty  of  evangelizing  the  whole 
world.^ 

The  first  theologian  connected  with  the  Eeformation 
movements  to  maintain  that  "  the  command  to  preach  the 
gospel  to  all  nations  binds  the  Church "  for  all  time  was 
Adrianus  Saravia  (1531—1613),  a  Dutchman,  who,  after 
being  a  Keformed  pastor  at  Antwerp  and  Brussels,  and  a 
professor  at  Leyden,  eventually  became  Dean  of  Westminster. 
In  his  treatise  "  concerning  the  different  orders  of  the 
ministry  of  the  gospel  as  they  were  instituted  by  the 
Lord,"  published  in  1590,  he  urges  the  duty  of  the  Church 
to  carry  on  the  task  of  the  evangelization  of  the  world, 
which  had  been  begun  by  the  apostles,  and  argues  that 
the  maintenance  of  the  episcopal  office  is  necessary  to  the 
fulfilment  of  this  task. 

This  treatise  by  Saravia  drew  from  Theodore  Beza  of 
Geneva  a  reply  (1592)  in  the  course  of  which  he  disputed 
the  interpretation  of  the  missionary  command  given  by 
Saravia  and  maintained  that  its  obligation  did  not  extend 
beyond  the  first  century.  Later  on,  Johann  Gerhard 
(d.  1637)  wrote,  opposing  the  views  of  Saravia  and 
maintaining  that  the  command  to  preach  the  gospel  in 
the  whole  world  ceased  with  the  apostles  {mandatum 
prcedicandi  evangelium  in  toto  terrarum  orhe  cum  apostolis 
He  gives  as   one   reason  for  believing   that  this 


*  See  his  treatise,  Ecdesiastes,  sive  de  ratione  cmicionandi.  A  quotation 
of  some  length  is  given  by  Dr.  Geo.  Smith  in  his  Short  History  of  Christian 
Missions,  p.  116  f. 


44  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

was  SO,  that  St.  Paul  himself  declared  that  this  command 
had  been  already  obeyed,  and  that  the  gospel  had  brought 
forth  fruit  in  the  whole  world  (Eom.  x.  18,  Col.  i.  23). 
The  arguments  that  he  adduces  reappear  in  an  official 
document  issued  by  the  theological  Faculty  of  Wittenberg 
which  represented  Lutheran  orthodoxy,  and  which  had  been 
elicited  by  an  inquiry  addressed  to  the  Faculty  by  Count 
Truchsess,  who  desired  to  have  an  explanation  of  the  scope 
of  the  missionary  command  recorded  by  St.  Matthew. 
The  Faculty  declared  that  the  command  to  go  into  all  the 
world  was  only  a  personal  privilege  (personate  privilegium) 
of  the  apostles,  and  had  already  been  fulfilled.  They 
argued  that  if  this  were  not  so  it  would  be  the  duty  of 
every  Christian  to  become  a  missionary — a  conclusion 
which  was  absurd.  They  further  declared  that  inasmuch 
as  all  nations  once  possessed  the  knowledge  of  God,  He 
is  not  bound  to  restore  to  their  descendants  what  has 
been  taken  away  crimine  Icesce  majestatis.  Lastly,  they 
suggested  that  where  a  Christian  Government  is  established 
in  a  non-Christian  land  it  behoves  the  civil  authorities  to 
build  churches  and  establish  schools  for  the  benefit  of  the 
"  sinners  "  whom  they  have  brought  under  their  sway. 

The  first  attempt  at  missionary  work  made  by 
members  of  the  Eeformed  Churches  was  not  followed  by 
any  permanent  result.  In  1555  Villegaignon,  a  French 
adventurer,  who  founded  a  colony  in  Brazil,  asked  Calvin 
to  send  Christian  preachers,  whether  to  minister  to  the 
French  Protestants  or  to  evangelize  the  heathen  is  not 
certain.  Eichier,  who  was  one  of  four  clergymen  sent, 
wrote  shortly  after  his  arrival  in  Brazil  that  they  had 
purposed  to  win  the  native  heathen  for  Christ,  but  that 
their  barbarism,  their  cannibalism,  and  their  spiritual 
dullness  "  extinguished  all  our  hope." 

It  would  be  interesting  to  watch  the  countenances  of  a 
missionary  committee  to-day  which  should  receive  a  similar 
pessimistic  report  from  one  of  its  missionaries  before  he 
iiad  even  begun  to  learn  the  language  of  the  country  to 
which  he  had  been  sent ! 


THE   DAWN    OF   MODERN    MISSIONS  45 

George  Fox  (1624—91),  who  founded  the  Society  of 
Friends,  and  who  had  himself  visited  America,  wrote : 
"  All  friends  everywhere,  that  have  Indians  or  blacks,  you 
are  to  preach  the  gospel  to  them  and  other  servants  if 
you  be  true  Christians."  In  1661  three  of  his  followers 
set  out  as  missionaries  to  China,  but  did  not  succeed  in 
reaching  that  country. 

The  first  Lutheran  to  attempt  definitely  missionary 
work  was  an  Austrian,  Baron  Justinian  von  Weltz  (b.  1621). 
After  writing  several  treatises  in  which  he  maintained  the 
missionary  obligation  attaching  to  all  Christians,  he  laid 
aside  his  baronial  title  and  sailed  for  Dutch  Guiana,  where 
he  soon  afterwards  died.  The  change  of  attitude  in  favour 
of  the  recognition  of  the  duty  of  prosecuting  foreign 
missions  that  took  place  amongst  the  Lutheran  Christians 
towards  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  was  due  in 
part  to  the  writings  and  example  of  Von  Weltz. 

Thus  S'pener  (1635—1705),  who  has  been  called  the 
"  Father  of  pietism,"  in  the  course  of  a  sermon  preached 
on  the  Feast  of  the  Ascension  said : 

"  The  obligation  rests  on  the  whole  Church  to  have  care 
as  to  how  the  gospel  shall  be  preached  in  the  whole  world, 
.  .  .  and  to  this  end  no  diligence,  labour,  or  cost  be  spared 
in  such  work  on  behalf  of  the  poor  heathen  and  unbelievers. 
That  almost  no  thought  even  has  been  given  to  this  .  .  . 
is  evidence  how  little  the  honour  of  Christ  and  of  humanity 
concerns  us." 

At  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  cause  of 
foreign  missions  found  an  earnest  advocate  in  the  well-known 
philosopher,  Baron  von  Leibnitz,  whose  interest  in  them 
had  been  aroused  by  his  conversations  with  Jesuit  mis- 
sionaries from  China  whom  he  had  met  in  Eome.  One 
of  those  whom  he  influenced  was  Francke,  who  was 
associated  with  the  sending  out  of  the  Danish  Mission 
to  India. 

In  1700  the  Boyal  Society  of  Prussia  was  founded  in 
Berlin,  and  in   1702   a  collegium    orientale  was  added    in 


46  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

order  that  the  society — to  quote  the  words  of  the  royal 
declaration — 

"  may  also  be  a  college  for  the  propagation  of  the  Christian 
faith,  worship,  and  virtue,  that  upon  occasion  of  their 
philosophical  observations  which  they  shall  make  in  the 
northern  part  of  Asia,  they  shall  likewise  diligently  endeavour 
that  among  the  barbarous  people  of  those  tracts  of  land  as 
far  as  China,  the  light  of  the  Christian  faith  and  the  purer 
gospel  may  be  kindled,  and  even  that  China  itself  may  be 
assisted  by  those  Protestants  who  travel  thither  by  land  or 
sail  to  that  country  through  the  Northern  Sea." 

Dr.  Jablonski,  the  vice-president  of  the  Eoyal  Society, 
writing  to  a  representative  of  the  English  S.P.G.  (on  Jan- 
uary 20,  1711)  stated  that  the  formation  of  this  "oriental 
college  "  was  an  act  of  "  pious  emulation  "  on  the  part  of 
those  in  Prussia  who  had  heard  of  the  proposed  formation 
of  the  S.P.G. 

Dutch  Missions. — The  Dutch  East  India  Company, 
which  was  founded  in  1602,  was  bound  by  the  charter 
granted  by  the  State  to  care  for  the  planting  of  the  Church 
and  the  conversion  of  the  heathen  in  the  countries  with 
which  it  traded.  At  its  instigation  was  founded  in  1622, 
at  the  University  of  Leyden,  an  institution  called  the 
Seminarium  Indimim,  which  for  twelve  years  helped 
to  provide  preachers  and  missionaries  for  the  Company's 
service.  These  engaged  for  a  period  of  five  years  only, 
and  the  majority  of  them  returned  to  Holland  without 
having  mastered  the  languages  of  the  peoples  amongst 
whom  they  lived. 

The  causes  of  the  comparative  failure  of  the  Dutch 
missions  are  thus  described  by  Dr.  Warneck :  ^ 

"  At  the  best  the  preachers  mastered  the  language  of  the 
Malays,  but  the  motley  population  of  the  wide  archipelago 
has  many  languages,  and  only  in  the  case  of  Ceylon  and 
Formosa  can  it  be  pretended  that  they  attempted  to  learn 
other  languages.  No  doubt  there  was  a  Malay  and  also  a 
Singalese  translation  of  the  Bible :  so  also  in  Formosa  some 

'  History  of  Protestant  Missions^  p.  45  f. 


THE    DAWN    OF    MODERN   MISSIONS  47 

books  of  the  New  Testament  were  translated  into  the 
language  of  the  country  .  .  .  with  honourable  exceptions 
the  mission  work  itself  became  very  superficial.  .  .  .  The 
example  of  Portuguese  sham-Christianization  worked 
infectiously.  Thousands  were  received  into  the  Church  by 
baptism  without  heed  to  inward  preparedness.  .  .  .  When 
in  1674  one  of  the  kings  of  Timor  declared  that  he  and  his 
people  were  willing  to  become  Christians,  the  preacher 
Ehymdyk  was  sent '  to  see  to  what  was  necessary ' — that  is,  to 
baptize  the  whole  people  off-hand.  In  the  state  of  Amboina 
the  chiefs  simply  received  a  command  to  have  always  at  the 
time  of  the  preacher's  visit  a  number  of  natives  ready  for 
baptism;  and  since  for  everyone  who  was  baptized  the 
preacher  received  a  sum  per  head,  it  will  be  easily  under- 
stood that  he  was  not  particular  if,  as  often  happened,  he 
himself  was  not  a  man  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  of  faith. 
.  .  .  With  such  a  method  of  conversion  it  can  easily  be 
understood  how  at  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century  the 
number  of  Christians  should  be  given  in  Ceylon  alone  as 
from  300,000  to  400,000,  in  Java  as  100,000,  in  Amboina 
as  40,000,  and  no  less  easily  how  the  Christianity  of  these 
masses  was  inwardly  worthless,  and  almost  vanished  when, 
as  in  Ceylon,  the  rule  of  the  Dutch  came  to  an  end,  or  con- 
tinued to  exist  only  as  a  dead  nominal  Christianity.  .  .  . 
In  Formosa  alone  had  a  better  foundation  been  laid,  but 
there,  after  the  expulsion  of  the  Dutch  by  the  Chinese  pirates 
in  1661,  the  nascent  Christianity  was  forcibly  extinguished." 

The  Danish-Halle  Mission. — The  Danish  colonial  pos- 
sessions date  from  1620  in  the  East  Indies,  and  from 
1672  in  the  West  Indies  and  Gold  Coast.  In  1705  Dr. 
Liitkens,  who  had  been  appointed  as  a  Danish  court  chaplain 
in  the  previous  year,  and  who  had  lived  for  a  time  with 
Spener  in  Berlin,  was  commissioned  by  the  king,  Frederick 
IV.,  to  seek  out  missionaries  who  might  be  sent  to  the 
Danish  colonies.  Having  failed  to  find  suitable  men  in 
Denmark,  he  applied  to  Francke  at  Halle  in  Germany,  and 
through  his  assistance  the  first  two  missionaries,  Bartholomew 
Ziegenbalg  and  Henry  Plutschau,  were  sent  forth  from 
Copenhagen  by  the  Bishop  of  Zealand  on  November  29, 1705. 
Whilst  staying  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  on  their  way 
out  to  Tranquebar,  they  sent  home  a  deplorable  account  of 


48  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

the  Hottentots  who  were  under  Dutch  rule.  This  eventu- 
ally resulted  in  the  commencement  of  a  Moravian  mission 
at  the  Cape.  On  arriving  at  Tranquebar  (July  9,  1706) 
they  experienced  much  hostility  from  the  Danish  officials, 
who  regarded  their  enterprise  as  fanatical  and  quixotic. 
Their  work,  nevertheless,  was  soon  attended  by  visible 
results.  Ten  months  after  their  arrival  they  baptized  five 
heathen  slaves  of  Danish  masters,  and  five  months  later 
they  baptized  nine  adult  Hindus.  In  the  following  year 
Ziegenbalg  made  a  preaching  tour  through  the  kingdom  of 
Tanjore,  and  the  reports  of  this  tour,  and  of  his  public 
conferences  with  Brahmans,  were  translated  into  English  by 
the  Eev.  A.  W.  Boehm,  formerly  chaplain  to  Prince  George 
of  Denmark,  and  were  dedicated  to  the  S.P.G.,  and  the  500 
copies  purchased  and  distributed  by  this  society  "  proved 
a  motive  to  many  charitable  benefactions  contributed  by 
well-disposed  persons  for  advancing  this  mission."  The 
English  East  India  Company  offered  to  convey  the  books 
and  letters  belonging  to  the  mission  free  of  charge,  and 
the  S.P.C.K.  undertook  to  receive  funds  on  its  behalf. 

In  1714  a  college  for  promoting  the  spread  of  the 
gospel  was  founded  as  a  state  institution  at  Copenhagen, 
but,  notwithstanding  the  existence  of  this  college,  the  real 
direction  and  control  of  the  mission  remained  at  Halle 
in  Germany.  Pliitschau  returned  invalided  in  1711,  by 
which  time  the  New  Testament  had  been  translated  into 
Tamil  and  a  Tamil  dictionary  was  nearly  completed.  When 
Ziegenbalg  returned  in  1715,  he  was  presented  to  George  I., 
who  wrote  to  him  after  he  had  returned  to  Tranquebar  a 
letter  (dated  August  23,  1717)  expressing  satisfaction 
"  not  only  because  the  work  undertaken  by  you  of  con- 
verting the  heathen  to  the  Christian  faith  doth,  by  the 
grace  of  God,  prosper,  but  also  because  that  in  this  our 
kingdom  such  a  laudable  zeal  for  the  promotion  of  the 
gospel  prevails." 

When  Ziegenbalg  died  in  1719,  aged  thirty-six,  he 
left  355  converts  and  numerous  catechumens,  a  complete 
Tamil  Bible,  a  dictionary,  a  mission  seminary  and  schools. 


THE   DAWN    OF   MODERN   MISSIONS  49 

Francke  was  the  chief  supporter  in  Germany  of  the 
Danish-Halle  Mission  and  helped  to  train  many  of  its 
earliest  missionaries. 

We  shall  refer  to  this  mission  later  on  in  describing 
missionary  work  in  India.  Meanwhile  we  may  quote  Dr. 
Warneck's  statement : 

"  As  to  the  history  of  the  Danish-Halle  Mission,  ...  let 
it  suffice  to  note  that  from  Francke's  institutions  there  have 
been  sent  out  in  the  course  of  a  century  about  sixty  mission- 
aries, amongst  whom,  besides  conspicuous  men  like 
Ziegenbalg,  Fabricius,  Janecke,  Gericke,  Christian  Friedrich 
Schwartz  was  distinguished  as  a  star  of  the  first  magnitude. 
Amid  various  little  strifes  and  ample  distress  .  .  .  this  .  .  . 
on  the  whole  solid  and  not  unfruitful  mission  (about 
15,000  Christians)  maintained  itself  until  in  the  last  quarter 
of  the  century  and  afterwards  rationalism  at  home  dug  up 
its  roots.  Only  when  the  universities,  having  fallen  com- 
pletely under  the  sway  of  this  withering  movement,  ceased 
to  furnish  theologians,  was  the  first  trial  made  in  1803  of 
a  missionary  who  had  not  been  a  university  student. 
Meanwhile  a  more  living  interest  had  been  awakened  in 
England,  and  so  the  connection  which  had  already  for  some 
time  existed  with  friends  of  missions  there,  and  specially  the 
alliance  with  the  Church  missionary  societies,  saved  the 
Tamil  Mission  from  ruin.  Then  later  the  Dresden-Leipsic 
Lutheran  Missionary  Society  stepped  into  the  old  heritage 
of  the  fathers,  after  Halle  had  long  ceased  to  be  an  active 
centre."  ^ 

The  college  which  had  been  founded  at  Copenhagen 
sent  out  Hans  Egede,  a  Norwegian  pastor,  to  start  work  in 
Greenland  in  1721.  The  hardships  and  disappointments 
that  he  and  his  associates  encountered  resulted  in  an 
order  from  the  King  of  Denmark  to  discontinue  the  work 
(see  p.  51). 

Moravian  Missions.  —  The  missionary  activities  of  no 
other  branch  of  the  Christian  Church  can  compare  with 
those  of  the  Moravian  Church.  Within  twenty  years  of 
the  commencement  of  their  missionary  work  the  Moravian 
Brethren  had  started   more  missions  than  Anglicans  and 

^  History  of  Protestant  Missions^  p.  57  f. 
4 


60  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Protestants  had  started  during  the  two  preceding  centuries. 
Their  marvellous  success  was  largely  due  to  the  fact  that  from 
the  first  they  recognized  that  the  evangelization  of  the  world 
was  the  most  pressing  of  all  the  obligations  that  rested 
upon  the  Christian  Church,  and  that  the  carrying  out  of 
this  obligation  was  the  "  common  affair  "  of  the  community. 
Up  to  the  present  time  the  Moravians  have  sent  out  nearly 
3000  missionaries,  the  proportion  of  missionaries  to  their 
communicant  members  being  1  in  12.  Amongst  English 
Christians  generally  the  proportion  is  said  to  be  1  in  2000. 
To  the  Moravians  it  seemed  impossible  that  any  branch  of 
the  Christian  Church  could  continue  to  exist  which  failed 
to  recognize  this  common  obligation.  It  would  be  little 
exaggeration  to  say  that  the  continued  existence  and  vitality 
of  the  Moravian  Church  are  a  result  of  its  missionary 
activity. 

The  Moravian  community  or  brotherhood  (JJnitas 
Fratrum)  dates  back  to  1467.  The  Moravians  who  were 
expelled  from  Austria  in  1722  settled  at  Herrnhut,  not  far 
from  Dresden,  where  they  were  welcomed  by  Count  von 
Zinzendorf  (1700-60),  who  helped  to  inspire  them  with 
a  zeal  for  foreign  missions  and  was  eventually  consecrated 
(1737)  as  a  Bishop  of  the  Moravian  Church.  Their  first 
mission  ^  was  to  the  negro  slaves  in  the  Danish  island  of 
St.  Thomas  in  the  West  Indies.  A  negro  from  this  island, 
who  had  been  invited  to  Herrnhut  by  Count  Zinzendorf, 
appealed  to  the  Brethren  for  help.  He  said  to  them,  **  You 
cannot  come  unless  you  are  willing  to  become  slaves  "  ;  and 
although  this  forecast  was  not  literally  fulfilled,  the  first 
missionaries  who  responded  to  this  appeal  were  not  dis- 
couraged by  the  terms  proposed.  On  August  21,  1732, 
Leonard  Dober,  a  potter,  and  David  Nitschmann,  a 
carpenter,  left  Herrnhut  for  Copenhagen  on  their  way  to 
the  West  Indies,  being  the  advanced  guard  of  an  army  of 
nearly  3000  missionaries  which  the  Moravian  Church  has 
sent  forth. 

^  For  a  sketch  of  Moravian  missions  see  A  Short  History  of  the  Moravian 
Church,  by  J.  E.  Hutton. 


THE   DAWN   OF   MODERN   MISSIONS  51 

On  reaching  St.  Thomas  : 

"they  won  the  hearts  of  the  slaves  and  made  them  clap 
their  hands  for  joy.  They  aroused  the  anger  of  the  brutal 
slave-owners.  .  .  .  They  caused  the  negroes  to  weep  and 
pray  in  sugar-field  and  hut,  and  brought  hundreds  of  con- 
verts to  baptism.  .  .  .  They  stood  fearlessly  before  high 
officials  .  .  .  and  by  showing  the  slave-owners  that  they 
should  no  longer  treat  their  slaves  as  beasts,  prepared  the 
way  for  negro  emancipation."  ^ 

In  1734  mission  work  was  started  in  the  island  of 
St.  Croix,  and  a  little  later  in  Jamaica  and  Anticrua. 

The  Mission  to  Greenland. — When  Count  Zinzendorf 
visited  the  Danish  Court  at  Copenhagen  in  1731,  he  met 
two  Eskimos,  who  had  been  baptized  by  the  Danish 
missionary  Egede.  On  hearing  that  it  was  proposed  to 
discontinue  the  work  in  Greenland,  two  Moravian  Brethren, 
Stack  and  Boemish,  who  were  by  occupation  grave-diggers, 
volunteered  to  undertake  work  there,  and  reached  Green- 
land in  1733. 

"  At  first  their  outlook  was  gloomy.  When  they  tried 
to  earn  their  living  by  fishing,  they  found  themselves  unable 
to  manage  their  boat,  and  had  to  live  chiefly  on  seaweed. 
They  had  to  learn  two  new  languages — first,  the  Danish,  and 
then  through  the  Danish  the  Eskimo — and  the  Greenlanders 
took  the  opportunity  to  cheat  them.  .  .  .  When  the  two 
cousins  stood  up  to  preach,  the  natives  treated  them  shame- 
fully, danced  around  them,  mimicked  them,  howled, 
drummed,  pelted  them  with  stones.  *  As  long  as  we  have  a 
sound  body,'  said  these  greasy  Greenlanders  .  .  .  '  we  have 
enough.  Your  people  may  have  diseased  souls;  go  back  to 
those  that  need  you.'  When  the  first  convert,  Kajarnak, 
came  forward  with  his  family  to  be  baptized,  a  plot  was 
formed,  and  his  father-in-law  was  murdered.  To  add  to  the 
missionaries'  troubles,  the  small-pox  broke  out  and  carried 
off  from  two  to  three  thousand  of  the  people.  .  .  .  The 
Moravians  were  hated  and  despised  by  the  people:  they 
were  looked  upon  as  the  cause  of  the  small-pox ;  they  had 
to  attend  on  two  thousand  ungrateful  patients ;  they  were 

*  A  Short  History  of  the  Moravian  Church,  p.  152. 


52  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

almost  dying  of  hunger ;  and  as  they  lay  in  their  snow  huts 
at  night,  with  the  cold  stars  above  them  and  the  sounds  of 
midnight  revelry  in  their  ears,  they  felt  indeed  that  only  by 
the  strength  of  Christ  could  they  win  the  hard-fought 
battle.  At  last,  after  years  of  waiting,  the  long  night  began 
to  break  .  .  .  and  from  the  moment  when  Kajarnak,  as  he 
listened  with  awe  to  the  story  of  Gethsemane,  came  forward 
with  his  eager  question,  '  What  is  that  ?  Tell  me  that  again,' 
the  work  began  to  flourish,  the  hope  of  the  missionaries 
swelled  to  faith,  and  the  Rose  of  Sharon  began  to  bloom  in 
the  eternal  snows  of  the  '  Land  of  Desolation.' "  ^ 

In  1740  the  Moravian  missionaries  made  an  important 
change  in  the  methods  of  presenting  the  gospel  to  the  Green- 
landers  which  they  had  hitherto  adopted.  In  the  Historical 
Sketches  of  the  Missions  of  the  United  Brethren^  written  by 
John  Holmes  and  published  in  1818,  this  change  is  thus 
described : 

"  A  great  change  took  place  in  the  mode  adopted  by  our 
brethren  in  their  endeavours  to  instruct  the  natives.  The 
method  hitherto  pursued  by  them  consisted  principally  in 
speaking  to  the  heathen  of  the  existence,  the  attributes, 
and  perfection  of  God,  and  enforcing  obedience  to  the  divine 
law,  hoping  by  this  means  gradually  to  prepare  their  minds 
for  the  reception  of  the  sublimer  and  more  mysterious  truths 
of  the  gospel :  and  it  must  be  allowed  that,  abstractly  con- 
sidered, this  method  appears  the  most  rational ;  but  when 
reduced  to  practice,  it  was  found  wholly  ineffectual.  For 
five  years  our  missionaries  had  laboured  in  this  way,  and 
could  scarce  obtain  a  patient  hearing  from  the  savages. 
Now,  therefore,  they  determined  in  the  literal  sense  of  the 
word  to  preach  Christ  and  Him  crucified  without  first  '  lay- 
ing the  foundation  of  repentance  from  dead  works  and  faith 
towards  God.*  No  sooner  did  they  declare  unto  the  Green- 
landers  *  the  word  of  reconciliation '  in  its  native  simplicity 
than  they  beheld  its  converting  and  saving  power.  This 
reached  the  hearts  of  the  audience  and  produced  the  most 
astonishing  effects.  An  impression  was  made  which  opened 
a  way  to  their  consciences  and  illuminated  their  under- 
standings.    They  remained  no  longer  the  stupid  and  brutish, 

^  A  Short  History  of  the  Moravian  Church,  p.  154  f,  •  P,  31  f. 


THE   DAWN    OF   MODERN    MISSIONS  53 

creatures  they  had  once  been ;  they  felt  they  were  sinners, 
and  trembled  at  their  danger ;  they  rejoiced  in  the  offer  of  a 
Saviour,  and  were  rendered  capable  of  relishing  sublimer 
pleasures  than  plenty  of  seals  and  the  low  gratifications  of 
sensual  appetites.  A  sure  foundation  being  thus  laid  in  the 
knowledge  of  a  crucified  Eedeemer,  our  missionaries  soon 
found  that  this  supplied  their  young  converts  with  a  power- 
ful motive  to  the  abhorrence  of  sin  and  the  performance  of 
every  moral  duty  towards  God  and  their  neighbour.  .  .  . 
In  short,  the  happiest  results  have  attended  this  practice, 
not  only  at  first  and  in  Greenland,  but  in  every  other 
country  where  our  missionaries  have  since  laboured  for  the 
conversion  of  the  heathen." 

Within  the  territory  occupied  by  the  Moravians  the 
work  of  evangelization  has  long  since  been  completed.  At 
their  General  Synod  in  1899  the  Moravians  handed  over 
their  missions  in  Greenland  to  the  Danish  Church  and 
quitted  Greenland  in  the  following  year. 

The  mission  to  Lahrador^  which  was  commenced  soon 
after  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  was  attended 
by  even  greater  difficulties  than  those  which  the  mission- 
aries had  to  encounter  in  Greenland,  but  these  were 
successfully  surmounted,  and  nearly  all  the  population  of 
Labrador  is  now  Christian. 

In  1738  a  mission  was  established  in  Surinam  or 
Dutch  Guiana.  On  reaching  the  coast  the  missionaries 
made  their  way  through  three  hundred  miles  of  jungles  and 
swamps  and  finally  settled  amongst  the  Accawois,  the 
Warrows,  the  Arawaks,  and  the  Caribs.  George  Dahne, 
one  of  the  missionaries,  lived  in  a  lonely  hut  in  the  forest 
for  two  years,  "  surrounded  by  wild  beasts  and  wilder 
men."  After  six  years  of  strenuous  toil,  the  first  convert, 
an  old  woman,  was  baptized.  As  the  work  began  to  attain 
visible  success  it  was  bitterly  opposed  by  the  Dutch  traders, 
and  the  Dutch  Government  issued  orders  forbidding  the 
Indians  to  join  any  Moravian  settlement. 

In  1735  the  Moravians  undertook  colonization  in 
Georgia^  and  commenced  missionary  work  amongst  the 
American  Indians.     Their  work,  which  met  with  a  large 


54  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

amount  of  initial  success,  was  so  vehemently  opposed  by 
the  other  white  settlers  that  they  at  length  withdrew 
altogether. 

In  1742  the  Moravian  missionary  Eauch  developed 
a  mission  at  Shekomelco  in  the  state  of  New  York, 
but  the  opposition  of  the  white  settlers  compelled  its 
abandonment.  A  missionary  settlement  established  in 
1746  at  GnadenhUtten  prospered  for  ten  years,  but  was 
then  destroyed  during  one  of  the  innumerable  wars  waged 
against  the  Indians. 

In  1736  Huckoff,  who  belonged  to  an  old  Moravian 
family,  attempted  to  start  a  school  among  the  slaves  on  the 
Gold  Coast. 

In  1737  George  Schmidt  reached  Cape  Toivn,  having 
been  sent  out  by  the  Brethren  at  Herrnhut.  By  this 
time  the  Dutch  had  held  Cape  Town  for  nearly  a  century, 
but  they  had  done  nothing  towards  the  evangelization  of 
the  Africans.  Schmidt  had  been  imprisoned  for  conscience' 
sake  for  six  years  in  Bohemia  before  he  set  sail  for  South 
Africa.  He  worked  for  six  years  among  the  Hottentots  at 
Bavianskloof,  and  won  the  hearts  of  many  by  his  teaching 
and  preaching.  The  Dutch  Boers,  who  disliked  and  de- 
spised the  Hottentots,  were  far  from  being  pleased  at  his 
success.  In  1742  Schmidt,  having  received  an  "act  of 
ordination"  from  Zinzendorf,  proceeded  to  baptize  five 
Hottentots.  His  action  gave  umbrage  to  the  regular 
Dutch  ministers  at  Cape  Town,  and  after  fruitless  attempts 
to  arrive  at  an  understanding  with  them  he  started  in 
October  1743  on  his  return  to  Europe.  He  left  behind 
49  adherents,  5  of  whom  had  been  baptized.  For  nearly 
fifty  years  after  his  departure  no  attempt  was  made  to 
carry  on  the  work  which  he  had  inaugurated. 

The  principles  and  methods  which  characterized  these 
early  Moravian  missions  have  been  well  summarized  by  a 
Moravian  historian,  who  wrote  : 

"No  Moravian  missionary  worked  alone.  The  whole 
Church  threw  its  heart  into  the  task.  All  missionaries  went 
out  with  full  instructions,  and  were  followed  by  the  prayers 


THE   DAWN   OF    MODERN   MISSIONS  65 

of  the  whole  Church.  No  man  was  to  go  unless  his  mind 
was  fully  made  up ;  nay  more,  unless  he  could  not  help  it. 
He  must  be  a  man,  so  ran  the  rules,  who  felt  within  him  an 
irresistible  call ;  a  man  who  loathed  the  lusts  of  the  world, 
who  burned  with  love  to  Christ,  who  was  approved  by  all 
his  brethren,  and  whose  face  shone  with  the  light  of  a 
divine  joy,  which  should  enlighten  the  black  hearts  of  the 
heathen.  As  for  the  work  of  the  missionaries,  it  was 
thorough  and  deep  and  well  organized.  Everything  was 
done  according  to  a  well-considered  plan.  When  the 
missionaries  arrived  at  their  post  they  were  to  announce 
themselves  to  the  people  as  messengers  sent  by  Jesus 
Christ.  ...  As  soon  as  possible  after  their  arrival  they 
translated  portions  of  the  gospels  into  the  native  language, 
and  with  this  as  their  weapon  spoke  straight  to  the  hearts  of 
the  people.  Instead  of  puzzling  the  poor  heathens'  brains 
with  shadowy  notions  of  a  great  and  good  God,  they  went 
straight  to  the  mark :  *  Jesus  Christ  lived  and  died,  and 
lives  now,  to  save  thee  from  thy  sins.'  ...  As  they  never 
baptized  till  they  were  perfectly  sure  (as  far  as  man  can  be 
sure)  that  the  candidate  was  a  genuine  Christian,  they  often 
seemed  to  work  but  slowly ;  but  they  found  it  better  to  do 
their  work  thoroughly  than  be  content  with  a  mere  coating 
of  sham  religion.  .  .  .  Above  all,  with  their  teaching,  they 
did  not  forget  discipline.  .  .  .  But  the  iron  hand  had  a 
silken  glove  .  .  .  and  by  kindness  and  love  and  tenderness 
they  won  the  hearts  of  the  heathen.  ...  *  It  will  not  do,' 
said  Zinzendorf,  *to  measure  everything  by  the  Herrnhut 
yard."i 

The  districts  in  which  Moravian  missionaries  are  at 
work  to-day  include  Labrador,  Alaska,  California  (amongst 
the  Indians),  Jamaica,  eight  of  the  West  Indian  Islands, 
Nicaragua,  Demerara,  Surinam,  South  Africa,  East  Central 
Africa,  West  Himalayas,  and  North  Queensland.  Their 
missionaries,  who  number  altogether  367,  include  38  theo- 
logians, 1  doctor,  26  tradesmen,  6  artisans,  6  deaconesses, 
1 2  brethren  trained  in  London  and  6  at  Tubingen.  Of  the 
whole  number  142  are  ordained.  In  addition  to  these 
the  native  missionaries  include  48  ordained  and  25  un- 
ordained  brethren. 

*  A  Short  History  oj  the  Moravian  Church,  p.  102  f. 


56  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Anglican  Missions. — Of  missionary  societies  now  con- 
nected with  the  Anglican  Church  the  oldest  is  the  New 
England  Company  (formerly  known  as  "  The  Corporation 
for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  New  England  "),  which 
was  founded  by  the  Long  Parliament  in  1649.  It  was 
founded  at  the  instigation  of  Cromwell  after  a  petition 
had  been  presented  to  Parliament  in  1641  by  70  English 
and  Scottish  ministers.  The  money  necessary  for  its 
support  was  obtained  by  a  collection  directed  by  the 
same  Parliament  to  be  made  throughout  England  in  all 
parishes,  which  amounted  to  what  was  then  the  large 
sum  of  nearly  £12,000.  The  money  was  invested  in 
land,  and  the  income  forwarded  from  time  to  time 
through  the  Governors  of  the  United  Colonies  to  the 
Company's  first  missionary  in  New  England,  the  Eev.  John 
Eliot,  and  afterwards  to  his  assistants. 

At  the  Kestoration  the  Company  was  reconstituted, 
and  incorporated  by  King  Charles  ii.  in  1661.  The  first 
Governor  of  the  Company  was  the  Hon.  Eobert  Boyle  ^ 
(later  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Eoyal  Society). 

The  Company  continued  its  work  in  New  England  until 
the  year  1775,  when  the  War  of  Independence  broke  out. 

After  the  Declaration  of  Independence  the  Company 
transferred  the  scene  of  its  labours  to  New  Brunswick,  and 
the  work  among  the  Indians  there  was  carried  on  from 
1776  to  1822. 

In  1822  the  Company  transferred  its  operations  from 
New  Brunswick  farther  to  the  west.  Since  then  its 
missionaries  have  been  working  among  the  six  Indian 
nations  on  the  Grand  Eiver  Eeserve,  Ontario,  which  is 
the  largest  Indian  reserve  in  Canada.  The  Company  has 
built  several  churches  on  the  reserve,  and  entirely  main- 
tains three  clergymen,  several  catechists,  and  a  trained 
hospital  nurse. 

^  Robert  Boyle  was  for  thirty  years  Governor  of  this  Corporation.  In 
addition  to  his  labours  on  behalf  of  the  American  Indians,  he  published  at 
his  own  expense  the  Gospels  and  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  in  the  Malay 
language.     These  were  printed  at  Oxford  in  1677. 


THE   DAWN   OF    MODERN    MISSIONS  57 

The  Company  has  also  charge  of  the  Mohawk  Church 
(which  is  the  oldest  church  belonging  to  the  Anglican 
Communion  in  Canada),  and  has  built  and  maintains  the 
Mohawk  Institution.  This  institution  is  considered  by  the 
Indian  Department  of  the  Canadian  Government  to  be 
one  of  the  most  successful  industrial  schools  for  the 
children  (boys  and  girls)  of  Indians  in  the  Dominion.  The 
Mohawk  Church  and  Institution  are  in  Brantford,  Ontario. 
The  church  is  the  only  chapel  royal  in  Canada,  being 
styled  by  the  Crown  "His  Majesty's  Chapel  of  the 
Mohawks,"  and  possesses  silver  communion  plate  and  a 
Bible  presented  by  Queen  Anne  to  "Her  Chapel  of  the 
Mohawks,"  in  the  Mohawk  Valley,  Albany  (now  U.S.A.),  in 
the  year  1712.  During  the  war  the  plate  and  Bible  were 
buried,  but  were  subsequently  recovered  by  the  Indians  and 
by  them  brought  to  Canada. 

In  1901  the  Company  opened  a  new  sphere  of  work 
and  built  (at  the  invitation  of  the  bishop  of  New  West- 
minster) a  school  for  Indian  boys  at  Lytton  in  British 
Columbia.  The  membership  of  the  New  England  Com- 
pany has  since  its  foundation  consisted  entirely  of  laymen 
and  is  limited  to  25  members. 

The  Company  maintains  its  missionary  work  upon 
the  annual  income  derived  from  its  endowments,  which 
have  been  obtained  partly  by  the  amount  realized  from 
the  collection  already  referred  to,  and  partly  from 
the  bequests  of  the  Hon.  Eobert  Boyle  and  Dr.  Daniel 
Williams. 

The  Christian  Faith  Society,  originally  called  the 
Society  for  the  Conversion  and  Eeligious  Instruction  and 
Education  of  the  Negro  Slaves  in  the  British  West  India 
Islands,  was  founded  as  a  result  of  a  bequest  made  in  the 
will  of  Eobert  Boyle,  dated  1691.  Its  first  achievement 
was  the  foundation  of  the  College  of  William  and  Mary 
in  Virginia  for  the  instruction  of  Indian  children.  After 
the  War  of  Independence  the  operations  of  the  society 
were  diverted  to  the  West  Indies.  It  has  an  income  of 
£2300  per  annum,  derived  from  investments,  which  is  spent 


58  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

on  the  support  of  Anglican  work  for  the  benefit  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  West  Indian  Islands. 

The  formation  of  English  missionary  societies  for  the 
promotion  of  missionary  work  throughout  the  world 
may  be  said  to  date  from  the  opening  of  the  eighteenth 
century.  In  1698,  the  Society  for  Promoting  Christian 
Knowledge  was  formed,  its  chief  object  being  to  provide 
Christian  literature  and  to  promote  Christian  education 
both  at  home  and  abroad.  When  the  Danish  mission  to 
South  India  was  in  danger  of  becoming  extinct  through 
lack  of  funds,  the  S.P.C.K.  supported  it  financially  for 
a  hundred  years.  The  missionaries  were  for  the  most 
part  German  Lutherans,  of  whom  Schwartz  was  the  most 
remarkable  (see  p.  79). 

The  oldest  missionary  society  now  existing  in  England, 
which  was  founded  with  the  object  of  sending  out  mission- 
aries, is  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in 
Foreign  Parts.  It  can  claim  to  be  the  official  representative 
of  the  Church  of  England,  since  it  was  brought  into  exist- 
ence as  the  result  of  a  resolution  passed  by  convocation 
(March  13,  1700),  and  all  the  diocesan  bishops  in  England 
are  ex  officio  members  of  its  standing  committee. 

The  society  was  founded  with  the  twofold  aim  of 
ministering  to  English  settlers  beyond  the  seas  and  of 
propagating  the  gospel  amongst  the  heathen  with  whom 
the  settlers  might  come  into  contact.  The  society 
recognized  that  it  was  as  important  to  prevent  English 
people  from  becoming  heathen  as  it  was  to  attempt 
the  conversion  of  heathen  to  the  Christian  faith.  One 
of  its  earliest  missionaries,  the  Eev.  Thorogood  Moore, 
who  was  sent  to  New  York  in  1704  as  a  mission- 
ary to  Indians,  wrote  home  to  the  society :  "  To  begin 
with  the  Indians  is  preposterous,  for  it  is  from  the 
behaviour  of  the  Christians  that  here  they  have  had,  and 
still  have,  their  notion  of  Christianity,  which,  God  knows, 
hath  been  generally  such  that  it  hath  made  the  Indians  to 
hate  our  religion." 

Although  the  chief  efforts  of  the  society  were  directed 


THE   DAWN   OF    MODERN   MISSIONS  59 

at  first  towards  supplying  and  maintaining  clergy  for  the 
colonies  and  dependencies,  of  Great  Britain,  it  soon  began 
definite  work  amongst  the  Indians  and  negroes  of  North 
America. 

It  has  sometimes  been  stated  that  the  founders  of  the 
S.P.G.  did  not  regard  its  work  as  definitely  missionary 
in  character,  but  this  is  far  from  being  the  case.  In  the 
sermon  preached  at  the  first  anniversary  of  the  formation 
of  the  society  in  1702,  the  preacher  stated  that  it  was  part 
of  the  design  of  the  society  "  to  proceed  in  the  best  methods 
they  can  towards  the  conversion  of  the  natives,"  and  that 
it  included  "  the  breeding  up  of  persons  to  understand  the 
great  variety  of  languages  of  those  countries  in  order  to  be 
able  to  converse  with  the  natives  and  preach  the  gospel 
to  them."  At  a  meeting  of  the  society  held  on  April  20, 
1710,  the  following  resolutions  were  carried: 

"  1.  That  the  design  of  propagating  the  gospel  in  foreign 
parts  does  chiefly  and  principally  relate  to  the  conversion 
of  heathens  and  infidels,  and  therefore  that  branch  of  it 
ought  to  be  prosecuted  preferably  to  all  others.  2.  That,  in 
consequence  thereof,  immediate  care  be  taken  to  send 
itinerant  missionaries  to  preach  the  gospel  among  the  Six 
Nations  of  the  Indians  according  to  the  primary  intentions 
of  the  late  King  William  of  glorious  memory." 

Bishop  Seeker  (who  afterwards  became  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury)  said  in  1741 : 

"  In  less  than  forty  years,  under  many  discouragements 
and  with  an  income  very  disproportionate  to  the  vastness 
of  the  undertaking,  a  great  deal  hath  been  done;  though 
little  notice  may  have  been  taken  of  it  by  persons  unatten- 
tive  to  these  things,  or  backward  to  acknowledge  them  .  .  . 
great  multitudes  upon  the  whole  of  negroes  and  Indians 
brought  over  to  the  Christian  faith,  many  numerous 
congregations  have  been  set  up,  which  now  support  the 
worship  of  God  at  their  own  expense  where  it  was  not 
known  before,  and  seventy  persons  are  constantly  employed 
at  the  expense  of  the  society  in  the  further  service  of 
the  gospel."  ^ 

*  See  S.P.G.  Anniversary  Sermon,  1741,  p.  11  f. 


60  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  "  seventy  persons "  to  whom  reference  is  here 
made  included  all  those  who  were  engaged  in  ministering 
to  English-speaking  congregations.  Many  of  these  would, 
however,  be  in  touch  with  the  Indians,  as  "  the  instruction 
of  the  negro  and  Indian  slaves  and  (their  preparation)  for 
conversion,  baptism,  and  communion  was  a  primary  charge 
to  every  missionary  .  .  .  and  to  all  schoolmasters  of  the 
society  in  America."  ^ 

Further  references  to  the  work  undertaken  by  the 
S.P.G.  for  the  benefit  of  Indians  and  negroes  between 
1701  and  1750  in  North  America  and  the  West  Indies 
are  given  later  on  (p.  371—6). 

1  Two  Hundred  Years  of  the  S.P.O.,  p.  63. 


IV. 

INDIA. 

Before  attempting  to  describe  the  beginnings  of  Christian 
missions  in  India  it  would  be  well  to  make  a  brief  refer- 
ence to  the  connection  which,  it  is  often  maintained,  exists 
between  the  Baghavad  Gita  and  other  Hindu  literature 
and  the  Christian  Scriptures.  The  conclusion  which  seems 
to  be  best  supported  by  evidence  may  be  expressed  in 
the  words  of  Dr.  E.  W.  Hopkins  (U.S.A.).  After  con- 
sidering in  detail  the  points  of  resemblance  which  have 
been  suggested  between  the  teaching  of  the  Gospels,  specially 
that  of  the  Gospel  of  St.  John,  and  the  Gita  and  other 
Hindu  scriptures,  he  writes : 

"The  most  reasonable  explanation  of  the  data  as  a 
whole  appears  to  me  to  be  that  the  Fourth  Gospel,  perhaps 
not  uninfluenced  by  the  Gnosticism  of  the  time,  but  not 
necessarily  influenced  by  a  Buddhistic  tradition  or  by  any 
Sanskrit  texts,  was  of  a  mystical  tone  that  made  it 
peculiarly  suitable  to  influence  the  Hindu  divines,  who 
transferred  from  it  such  phrases  and  sentiments  as  best 
fitted  in  with  the  conception  of  Krishna  as  a  god  of  love. 
For  it  must  be  remembered  constantly  that  before  Krishna's 
advent  in  his  new  role  those  characteristics  of  Krishna  that 
bring  him  into  closest  likeness  with  Christ  are  entirely 
lacking  in  the  conception  of  any  previous  Hindu  divinity. 
Buddha  never  pretended  to  forgive  sin.  .  .  .  But  suddenly 
there  appears  this  benign  man-god,  who  proclaims  that  all 
sins  are  forgiven  to  him  who  believes  in  Krishna,  and  that 
those  who  believe  in  him  are  very  few  in  number,  yet  this 
new  religion  of  love  and  faith  is  better  than  the  old 
Brahmanic  religion  of  works  and  ceremonial  purity."  ^ 

» India  Old  and  New,   by  Dr.   E.    W.   Hopkins  (New  York,    1901), 
p.  158. 

6» 


62  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

When  we  come  down  to  the  writings  of  Tulsi  Das  (the 
Eamayana)  in  the  sixteenth  century  tfie  influence  of 
Christian  teaching  becomes  so  apparent  that  it  is  im- 
possible to  resist  the  conviction  that  his  development  of 
the  doctrine  of  hhaJcti  which  was  hinted  at  in  the 
Bhagavad  Gita  was  the  outcome  of  Christian  influences. 
Keferring  to  this  doctrine  Dr.  Grierson  writes: 

"  Suddenly  in  India  there  came  this  great  revolution  of 
bhakti.  Keligion  was  no  longer  a  matter  of  knowledge,  it 
became  one  of  emotion.  Bhakti  may  be  translated  by 
'  faith  *  or  *  devotion.'  It  requires  a  personal,  not  an  im- 
personal, God.  I  do  not  myself  doubt  that  this  great 
step  forward  of  the  Hindu  soul  was  due  to  the  influence 
of  the  Christians  who  were  then  settled  in  the  country.  It 
was  not  openly  an  adoption  of  Christian  principles  by 
Hindu  thinkers,  who  had  been  wasting  their  lives  on  a 
barren  search  for  knowledge.  In  such  a  search,  even  with 
the  brother-love  of  Buddhism  added  to  it,  the  people  could 
find  no  permanent  happiness.  The  craving  for  expressing 
love  towards  the  Infinite  which  exists  in  every  heart  was 
there,  a  spark  was  sufficient  to  set  it  in  a  flame,  and  that 
vital  spark  came  from  Christianity."  ^ 

For  a  detailed  discussion  of  the  influence  which 
Christianity  has  exerted  upon  the  teachings  of  modern 
Hinduism  the  reader  is  referred  to  any  of  the  standard 
books  on  Hinduism.  A  helpful  account  of  the  approxima- 
tions of  modern  Hindu  writers  to  Christian  thought  will 
be  found  in  The  Crown  of  HiThduism,  by  J.  N.  Farquhar, 
and  in  The  Renaissance  in  India,  by  C.  F.  Andrews. 

We  pass  on  to  consider  the  beginnings  of  actual  mis- 
sionary work  in  India. 

The  obscurity  attaching  to  the  first  preaching  of  the 
Christian  faith  in  Southern  India  is  in  part  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  word  India  was  used  during  the  early  centuries  of 

1  See  "Hinduism  and  Early  Christianity,"  by  G.  A.  Grierson,  The  East 
and  The  West,  April  1906,  p.  142  f.  As  an  incidental  proof  of  the  existence 
of  intercourse  between  Rome  and  South  India  in  the  first  century  a.d.  we 
may  refer  to  the  discovery  in  1850  at  Calicut  of  several  hundred  coins  all  of 
which  were  as  early  as  the  reign  of  Nero, 


INDIA  63 

the  Christian  era  in  a  number  of  different  senses.  The 
tradition  that  St.  Thomas,  whose  tomb  is  shown  to-day  at 
Mylapore,  a  suburb  of  Madras,  was  the  first  to  preach  the 
gospel  in  Southern  India  is  of  comparatively  late  origin.^ 
On  the  other  hand,  Origen's  statement  that  St.  Thomas 
went  as  a  missionary  to  Parthia  is  probably  correct.  The 
tradition  that  he  was  sold  to  a  Parthian  chief  called 
Gondophares  has  been  rendered  credible  by  the  discovery 
that  a  prince  of  this  name  ^  actually  existed  in  Parthia  at 
the  period  when  St.  Thomas  might  have  been  there. 
Heracleon,  a  Sicilian  Gnostic  who  wrote  about  a.d.  170, 
says  that  St.  Thomas  ended  his  days  in  peace ;  and 
St.  Clement  of  Alexandria,  who  quotes  this  statement, 
does  not  deny  it.  It  is  by  no  means  inconceivable  that 
St.  Thomas  extended  his  missionary  activities  from  Parthia 
into  North -West  India,  but  it  seems  certain  that  he  never 
visited  Southern  India.  Pantsenus  is  said  by  Eusebius  to 
have  travelled  from  Alexandria  to  India  about  A.D.  190  in 
order  to  preach  the  gospel.     The  words  of  Eusebius  are : 

"He  (Pantsenus)  is  said  to  have  found  there  among 
some  of  the  inhabitants  who  were  acquainted  with 
Christ  the  Gospel  of  Matthew,  which  had  reached  that 
country  before  him.  For  Bartholomew  is  said  to  have 
preached  to  these  people  and  to  have  left  them  a  Hebrew 
version  of  Matthew's  Gospel,  which  they  had  kept  until  the 
time  of  which  I  speak."  ^ 

It  seems  probable  that  by  India  is  here  meant  either 
Southern  Arabia  or  the  India  of  Alexander  the  Great — 
that  is,  the  valley  of  the  Indus.  One  of  the  bishops  who 
attended  the  Council  of  Nicsea,  a.d.  325,  was  described  as 
"John  of  Persia,  in  all  Persia  and  Great  India,"  the 
latter  word  apparently  being  intended  to  denote  the 
country  which   lay  between  Persia  and  the  Indus.     The 

*  See  "St.  Thomas  and  his  Tomb  at  Mylapore,"  by  James  Kennedy, 
in  The  East  and  The  West,  April  1907. 

^  Undaphares  of  Arachosia. 

*  Historia  Ecclesiastica,  v.  10.  3. 


64  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

India  visited  by  Frumentius  early  in  the  fourth  century 
was  apparently  Abyssinia,  and  the  India  of  Theophilus  the 
Indian  towards  the  end  of  the  fourth  century  was  Arabia 
Felix.  A  tradition  which  does  not  date  back  earlier  than 
the  seventh  century  assigns  Calamina,  or  Calamita,  as  the 
site  of  St.  Thomas'  martyrdom.  Possibly  this  may  be 
Kerman  in  Eastern  Persia,  or  Calama  in  Beluchistan. 

The  Church  in  Southern  India,  which  claims  to  trace  back 
its  ancestry  to  St.  Thomas,  was  an  offshoot  from  the  Church 
in  Persia,  which,  at  the  time  when  the  Church  in  India  was 
established  (that  is,  at  the  beginning  of  the  sixth  century), 
was  part  of  the  patriarchate  of  Babylon. 

Keferring  to  the  missionary  activities  of  this  patriar- 
chate. Dr.  Neale  writes : 

they  "  pitched  their  tents  in  the  camps  of  the  wandering 
Tartar :  the  Lama  of  Thibet  trembled  at  their  words :  they 
stood  in  the  rice  fields  of  the  Panjab  and  taught  the  fisher- 
men by  the  Sea  of  Aral :  they  struggled  through  the  vast 
deserts  of  Mongolia :  the  memorable  inscription  of  Singanfu 
attests  their  victories  in  China:  in  India  the  Zamorin 
(the  ruler  of  Calicut)  himself  respected  their  spiritual  and 
courted  their  temporal  authority.  .  .  .  The  power  of  the 
Nestorian  patriarch  culminated  in  the  beginning  of  the 
eleventh  century,  when  he  had  25  metropolitans,  who  ruled 
from  China  to  the  Tigris,  from  Lake  Baikal  to  Cape 
Comorin."  ^ 

The  identification  of  the  founder  of  Christianity  in 
Southern  India  with  the  Apostle  is  probably  to  be 
explained  by  the  local  tradition  which  asserts  that  in  the 
year  345  there  landed  in  Malabar,  under  the  convoy  of  a 
Jerusalem  merchant,  a  bishop  from  Edessa,  named  Thomas, 
who  brought  with  him  a  large  following,  which  included 
several  priests  and  deacons.  We  know  from  other  sources 
that  in  343  a  severe  persecution  of  Christians  occurred  in 
the  Persian  Empire. 

The   first  definite   authority    for    the    existence    of    a 

1  A  History  of  the  Holy  Eastern  Churchy  vol.  i.  p.  3,  143.      For  a  further 
reference  to  Nestorian  Bishoprics  in  Asia,  see  p.  164  f. 


INDIA  65 

Christian  Church  in  Southern  India  is  Cosmas  Indi- 
copleustes,  who,  about  a.d.  535,  found  Christian  churches 
and  clergy  in  Ceylon,  interior  India  and  Male  (Malabar), 
as  well  as  a  bishop  at  Kaliana  (Kalyan)  near  Bombay. 

He  states  that  the  Bishop  of  Kaliana  receives  imposition 
of  hands  from  Persia. 

In  1547  the  so-called  Thomas  Cross  was  discovered  at 
Milapur,  Madras.  On  it  and  on  two  other  similar  crosses 
found  at  Cottayam,  500  miles  away,  there  is  an  inscription 
in  ancient  Persian  (or  Pahlavi).  In  the  case  of  the  cross 
at  Madras  and  of  one  of  those  at  Cottayam  the  inscription 
proves  that  the  cross  must  have  been  in  existence  at  least 
as  early  as  the  seventh  century.  In  883  King  Alfred  of 
England  sent  two  priests,  Sighelm  and  Athelstan,  to 
India  via  Eome  to  carry  the  votive  offerings  which  he  had 
promised  to  St.  Thomas  during  the  siege  of  London. 

Of  what  befell  the  Christians  in  South  India  during  the 
next  four  centuries  we  know  nothing.  Marco  Polo,  who 
travelled  in  the  East  from  1270  to  1295,  writes: 

"In  the  kingdom  of  Quilon  (Travancore)  dwell  many 
Christians  and  Jews  who  still  retain  their  own  language." 

By  this  time  the  connection  between  the  Apostle 
Thomas  and  Milapur  had  attained  general  acceptance. 
Marco  Polo  says  that  there  lies 

"the  body  of  the  glorious  martyr  St.  Thomas  Apostle, 
who  suffered  martyrdom  there  ...  a  great  multitude  of 
Christians  and  Saracens  (Mohammedans)  make  pilgrimages 
thither." 

John  of  Monte  Corvino,  who  afterwards  became 
Archbishop  of  Cambaluc  (Peking),  spent  thirteen  months 
in  South  India,  1292-93,  on  his  way  to  China.  He 
writes : 

"At  different  places  in  that  province  (which  contains 
the  Church  of  the  Apostle  St.  Thomas)  I  baptized  some 
hundred  persons." 

5 


66  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Menentillus,  a  friar  who  visited  India  in  1310,  writes: 

"  Christians  and  Jews  there  are,  but  they  are  few  and  of 
no  high  standing.  Christians  and  all  who  have  Christian 
names  are  often  persecuted." 

Sir  John  Mandeville,  who  visited  South  India  early  in 
the  fourteenth  century,  states  that  round  about  the  tomb  of 
St.  Thomas  were  fifteen  houses  inhabited  by  Nestorian 
monks,  recreant  Christians  and  schismatics.  He  states 
that  the  body  of  St.  Thomas  has  been  transported  to  Edessa 
in  Syria,  but  had  again  been  brought  back  to  India.  The 
papal  nuncio  John  of  Marignola  on  his  way  home  from 
China  spent  nearly  two  years  in  India,  1348—50,  but 
the  information  which  he  supplies  adds  little  to  our 
knowledge  of  the  development  of  Christianity  in  South 
India. 

In  1503  the  Nestorian  Patriarch  Mar  Elia  IV.  sent 
three  bishops  to  Southern  India,  and  a  letter  received  by 
his  successor  which  announced  their  arrival  stated  that  in 
one  of  the  two  districts  in  which  Christians  were  found 
there  were  30,000  "families  of  the  faith."  In  1599  the 
Portuguese  representatives  in  India  succeeded  in  forcing 
the  Syrians  into  obedience  to  the  See  of  Eome,  but  half 
a  century  later,  when  Portuguese  political  influence  in  India 
began  to  wane,  the  larger  part  of  the  Church  renounced  its 
connection  with  the  E.C.  Church. 

The  Syrian  Christians  in  South  India  are  now  divided 
into  four  sections  : — 

1.  "  Orthodox  Syrians,"  or  simply  "  Syrians."  These  live 
under  their  Matran,  Mar  Dionysius,  and  his  four  suffragans. 
They  are  Monophysite  in  confession,  and  subordinate  to 
the  Patriarch  of  that  Church,  who  resides  at  Mardin  in 
Chaldaea.  They  are  often  called  Jacobites  because  they 
use  the  Liturgy  of  St.  James,  in  the  form  employed  by  the 
Church  referred  to. 

2.  Eomo-Syrians.  These  of  late  years  have  been  ruled 
by  Indian  bishops,  guided  by  Eoman  Catholic  fathers 
of     the    Jesuit     and    Carmelite     orders.       While    Eoman 


INDIA  67 

Catholic  in  confession,  they  use  their  own  rite,  which  is  an 
expurgated  and  amended  version  of  the  Liturgy  of  SS. 
Adai  and  Mari,  though  not  identical  with  the  version  of  the 
same  liturgy  used  by  the  Chaldseans  of  Mosul. 

3.  Eeformed  Syrians,  called  by  themselves  the 
"  Christians  of  St.  Thomas."  This  is  an  independent 
Church,  an  offshoot  from  the  Monophysite  Syrians,  having 
their  own  bishop,  Mar  Titus  Thomas,  with  two  suffragans. 
Their  formal  separation  from  the  "  Syrians "  dates  only 
from  about  the  year  1880.  The  Church  is  in  close  accord 
with  the  English  C.M.S.  missionaries  but  is  in  no  way  under 
their  control,  and  it  uses  an  expurgated  and  amended 
version  of  the  Liturgy  of  St.  James,  in  the  Malayalam 
language. 

4.  The  Syro-Chaldseans.  This  body,  which  is  the 
smallest  of  the  four,  is  an  off-shoot  from  the  Eomo-Syrians, 
from  whom  they  separated  in  1880.  In  theory  they  are 
Nestorian,  and  their  bishop.  Mar  Timotheus,  was  con- 
secrated by  the  Nestorian  Patriarch  in  1907,  but  in 
practice  they  bear  considerable  traces  of  long  subjection  to 
Eoman  Catholic  influences,  and  would  better  be  described 
as  "  Old  Catholics."  The  real  reason  for  their  separation 
was  apparently  the  refusal  of  the  Vatican  to  allow  native 
bishops  to  the  Eomo- Syrian  Church ;  but  though  that 
concession  has  been  made  since  their  departure,  it  has  not 
brought  about  their  reconciliation.  They  use  the  same 
liturgy  as  the  Eomo-Syrians. 

(For  the  number  of  Christians  belonging  to  each  of 
these  bodies  see  p.  1 2 1  f .) 

In  1816  the  C.M.S.  sent  four  clergy  to  try  to  revive 
the  Syrian  Church  and  to  translate  the  Scriptures  into  the 
vernacular.  This  "  mission  of  help  "  continued  for  twenty 
years,  after  which  the  C.M.S.  undertook  independent 
missionary  work  amongst  non-Christians. 

The  Syrian  Christians  during  the  long  centuries  of 
their  history  have  never  been  inspired  with  missionary 
enthusiasm  and  have  constituted  a  select  community  which 
corresponded  closely  to  an  Indian  caste.     During  the  last 


68  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

few  years,  however,  there  has  been  a  revival  amongst  them, 
and  the  "  Eeformed  Christians  "  have  sent  four  missionaries 
of  their  own  race  to  work  in  connection  with  the  National 
Missionary  Society  at  Karwar  in  the  Bombay  Presidency. 

The  only  contemporary  reference  to  Christianity  in 
India  during  the  fifteenth  century  is  the  statement  of  the 
Venetian  Nicolo  de  Conti,  who  on  his  return  to  Eome 
stated  that  the  body  of  St.  Thomas  "  reposes  honourably 
in  a  large  and  beautiful  church,  close  to  which  dwell  a 
number  of  Nestorian  Christians,  who  are  also  found  dis- 
seminated all  over  India,  just  as  Jews  are  found  in  Europe." 
We  should  greatly  like  to  penetrate  the  darkness  which 
conceals  the  fortunes  and  condition  of  these  tiny  Christian 
communities  during  this  long  period,  but  there  seems  little 
hope  that  we  shall  ever  be  enabled  to  do  so. 

On  May  9,  1498,  Vasco  da  Gama  landed  at  Calicut 
after  sailing  round  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.  His  arrival 
in  India  inaugurated  the  establishment  of  missions,  sup- 
ported by  the  kings  of  Portugal.  The  expedition  under 
Cabral,  which  sailed  in  1500,  included  several  monks 
who  were  intended  for  missionary  work,  and  their  numbers 
were  rapidly  augmented.  In  1534  Goa  was  constituted 
a  bishopric,  and  in  1557  an  archbishopric.  The  mission- 
aries belonged  to  the  Franciscan  and  Dominican  Orders. 
The  Portuguese  encouraged  their  soldiers  and  sailors  to 
take  native  Indian  wives,  and  as  the  offspring  of  these 
unions,  which  were  often  of  a  temporary  nature,  were 
baptized,  the  moral  character  of  the  Christian  community 
tended  to  become  more  and  more  deplorable.  During  the 
first  forty  years  of  the  sixteenth  century  the  missionaries 
do  not  appear  to  have  made  any  considerable  number  of 
converts,  but  before  the  middle  of  the  century  India  was  to 
receive  a  missionary  whose  arrival  forms  a  landmark  in  the 
history  of  Christian  missions  in  the  East. 

In  1523 — that  is,  eleven  years  before  the  institution  of 
the  "  Company  of  Jesus  " — Ignatius  Loyola  had  himself  left 
Spain  with  the  avowed  object  of  converting  the 
Mohammedans   of    Palestine   to    the    Christian    faith   and 


INDIA  69 

of  reconciling  the  Greek  Church  to  the  See  of  Eome. 
Sailing  from  Barcelona  to  Gaeta,  he  visited  Eome  and 
thence  begged  his  way  by  land  to  Venice.  From  here 
he  sailed  to  Cyprus  and  eventually  to  Jaffa.  On  Sep- 
tember 4,  1523,  in  company  with  other  pilgrims,  he  set  foot 
inside  the  Holy  City.  Here,  had  he  been  allowed  to  do  so, 
he  would  have  spent  the  rest  of  his  life.  The  Superior  of 
the  Franciscan  convent  in  Jerusalem,  who  had  been  given  by 
the  Pope  control  over  Christian  pilgrims,  refused,  however, 
to  allow  him  to  stay,  and  when  he  lingered  behind  the 
pilgrim  caravan  he  was  forcibly  conducted  to  Jaffa.  Had 
he  been  able  to  carry  out  his  purpose,  there  is  little  doubt 
that  the  Society  of  Jesus  would  not  have  been  formed  and 
that  he  would  himself  have  met  his  death  at  the  hands  of 
the  fanatical  Moslems  of  Jerusalem.  Despite  the  failure 
of  his  efforts  in  Jerusalem,  he  deserves  to  be  remembered 
as  one  of  the  earliest  missionaries  who  made  a  definite 
attempt  to  convert  Mohammedans  otherwise  than  by  the 
sword. 

By  his  personal  activities  and  by  his  teaching  Loyola 
was  largely  instrumental  in  arousing  the  whole  Roman 
Church  to  a  sense  of  missionary  obligation.  His  society 
sent  missionaries  to  India,  Brazil,  and  North  America,  and 
his  zeal  was  the  indirect  cause  of  the  missions  of  the 
Dominicans  to  China,  of  the  Franciscans  to  Tartary,  of 
the  Theatins  to  Armenia,  Persia,  and  Sumatra,  and  of  the 
Sulpicians  in  Montreal.  He  founded  at  Rome  the  first 
Jews*  Society,  the  first  Magdalene  Asylum,  and  the  first 
Orphan  House  on  record. 

In  the  year  that  Columbus  died  (1506)  Francis  Xavier 
was  born.  The  youngest  of  a  large  family  in  which  all 
the  other  boys  became  soldiers,  he  entered  the  University 
of  Paris  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  and  became  a  teacher  of 
philosophy  in  this  university  when  he  was  little  more  than 
twenty.  His  conversion  from  a  life  of  carelessness  and 
selfishness  to  one  of  self-denial  and  devotion  was  the 
result  of  five  years'  close  intercourse  with  Ignatius  Loyola, 
who  began  by  being  his  pupil,  but  whom  he  soon  learned 


70  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

to  regard  as  his  master.  On  the  Feast  of  the  Assumption 
in  the  year  1534,  Loyola  and  six  companions,  of  whom 
Xavier  was  one,  repaired  to  the  subterranean  chapel  of 
Montmartre,  and  amid  the  darkness,  at  dead  of  night, 
dedicated  themselves  by  solemn  vows  to  become  missionaries 
of  the  Church  and  to  preach  the  gospel  to  every  man 
whom  they  might  meet.  Two  years  later  the  members  of 
the  new  Order  placed  themselves  unreservedly  at  the  dis- 
posal of  the  Pope,  to  be  sent  by  him  as  missionaries  to  any 
part  of  the  world.  The  seven  years  which  passed  before 
a  definite  plan  was  elaborated  were  spent  by  Xavier  in 
visiting  hospitals  and  tending  the  sick  in  some  of  the 
principal  towns  in  Italy  and  in  preaching  to  the  poor 
wherever  he  could  obtain  an  audience.  After  abstaining 
from  interviewing  his  widowed  mother  and  his  much-loved 
sister,  lest  he  should  be  tempted  to  draw  back  from  his 
high  call,  he  embarked,  with  a  smiling  face,  on  his  thirty- 
fifth  birthday,  in  a  ship  sailing  for  India.  His  first  year 
there  was  spent  in  preaching,  catechizing,  and  visiting  the 
sick.  At  the  time  of  his  arrival  a  missionary  college  was 
in  course  of  erection  at  Government  expense  to  accommodate 
100  Indians  who  were  to  be  trained  as  Christian 
missionaries.  The  Franciscan  Principal  ere  long  gave 
place  to  a  member  of  the  Jesuit  Order,  and  the  college 
became  one  of  the  chief  centres  of  its  work  in  India. 
Prior  to  the  arrival  of  Xavier,  85  deputies  had  come  to 
Goa  to  implore  help  on  behalf  of  a  community  of  low  caste 
pearl-fishers  (Paravas)  who  lived  between  Cape  Comorin 
and  Eamnad  on  the  east  coast  and  were  oppressed 
by  Mohammedan  pirates.  They  offered,  as  the  price  of 
assistance,  to  become  Christians  and  to  acknowledge  the 
sovereignty  of  Portugal,  and  as  an  earnest  of  the  genuineness 
of  their  offer  they  all  allowed  themselves  to  be  baptized  in 
Goa.  A  fleet  was  dispatched  to  their  aid,  which  drove  off 
their  enemies.  The  whole  community,  20,000  in  number, 
were  baptized  in  the  course  of  a  few  weeks,  no  teacher, 
however,  being  left  behind  to  teach  them  the  meaning  of 
Christian  baptism. 


INDIA  71 

After  Xavier  had  laboured  for  a  year  in  Goa  he  spent 
fifteen  months  with  these  Paravas,  living  on  rice  and  water 
and  associating  with  them  as  one  of  themselves.  After 
returning  to  Goa  and  obtaining  the  assistance  of  some  of 
the  students  in  the  missionary  college  there,  he  returned 
to  the  Paravas  and  endeavoured  to  minister  both  to  their 
material  and  spiritual  wants.  During  this  period  he  is 
said  by  his  biographer  to  have  spent  twenty-one  and  a  half 
hours  each  day  in  prayer  and  labour  on  their  behalf,  and 
his  zeal  begat  a  corresponding  zeal  in  his  companions. 

To  those  who  are  familiar  with  modern  missionary 
methods,  it  may  seem  almost  incredible  that  during  the 
whole  of  Xavier's  missionary  activities  in  India  and  in  the 
Far  East  he  made  no  attempt  to  learn  any  language 
understood  by  those  to  whom  he  preached  and  was 
dependent  entirely  upon  interpreters.  How  unsatisfactory 
were  the  efforts  of  his  interpreters  may  be  gathered  from 
his  own  words : 

"  It  is  a  difficult  situation  to  find  oneself  in  the  midst 
of  a  people  of  strange  language,  without  an  interpreter. 
Eodriquez  tries,  it  is  true,  to  act  in  that  capacity,  but  he 
understands  very  little  Portuguese.  So  you  can  imagine 
the  life  I  lead  here,  and  what  my  sermons  are  like,  when 
neither  the  people  can  understand  the  interpreter  nor  the 
interpreter  the  preacher — to  wit,  myself." 

Again  he  writes: 

"We  could  not  understand  one  another,  as  I  spoke 
Castilian  and  they  Malabar,  so  I  picked  out  the  most 
intelligent  and  well-read  of  them  and  then  sought  out  with 
the  greatest  diligence  men  who  knew  both  languages.  We 
held  meetings  for  several  days,  and  by  our  joint  efforts 
and  with  infinite  difficulty  we  translated  the  Catechism  into 
the  Malabar  tongue.  This  I  learnt  by  heart,  and  then  I 
began  to  go  through  all  the  villages  of  the  Malabar  country, 
calling  around  me  by  the  sound  of  a  bell  as  many  as  I  could, 
children  and  men.  I  assembled  them  twice  a  day  and 
taught  them  the  Christian  doctrine,  and  thus  in  the  space 
of  a  month  the  children  had  it  well  by  heart. 

"Every  Sunday  I  collected  them  all,  men  and  women, 


72  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

boys  and  girls,  in  the  church.  They  came  with  great 
readiness  and  with  a  great  desire  for  instruction.  Then, 
in  the  hearing  of  all,  I  began  by  calling  on  the  name  of  the 
most  Holy  Trinity,  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  and  I 
recited  aloud  the  Lord's  Prayer  and  the  Creed  in  the 
language  of  the  country,  and  they  all  followed  me  in  the 
same  words,  and  delighted  at  it  wonderfully.  Then  I 
repeated  the  Creed  by  myself,  dwelling  upon  each  article 
singly  .  .  .  and  asking  them  after  each  article  whether  they 
believed  it.  .  .  .  After  explaining  the  Creed  I  go  on  to  the 
Commandments,  teaching  them  that  the  Christian  law  is 
contained  in  these  ten  precepts,  and  that  everyone  who 
observes  them  all  faithfully  is  a  good  and  true  Christian. 
After  this  I  recite  our  principal  prayers,  such  as  the  Our 
Father  and  the  Hail  Mary,  and  they  say  them  after  me. 
Then  we  go  back  to  the  Creed,  adding  the  Our  Father  after 
each  article  with  a  short  hymn ;  for  as  soon  as  I  have 
recited  the  first  article  I  sing  in  their  language :  *  Jesus,  Son 
of  the  living  God,  grant  us  the  grace  to  believe  firmly  this 
first  article  of  Your  faith,  and  that  we  may  obtain  this  from 
You  we  offer  You  the  prayer  taught  us  by  Yourself.'  We 
do  the  same  after  all  the  other  articles. 

"  We  teach  them  the  Commandments  in  the  following 
way.  After  we  have  sung  the  first,  which  enjoins  the  love 
of  God,  we  pray  thus  :  '  Jesus,  Son  of  the  living  God,  grant 
us  the  grace  to  love  Thee  above  all  things  * ;  and  then  we 
say  for  this  intention  the  Lord's  Prayer.  So  we  go  on 
through  the  other  nine,  changing  the  words  of  our  little 
invocation  as  occasion  requires.  Thus  I  accustom  them  to 
ask  for  these  graces  with  the  ordinary  prayers  of  the  Church, 
and  I  tell  them  at  the  same  time  that  if  they  obtain 
them  they  will  have  all  other  things  that  they  can  wish 
for  more  abundantly  than  they  would  be  able  to  ask  for 
them. 

"  I  make  them  all,  and  especially  those  who  are  to  be 
baptized,  repeat  the  form  of  general  confession.  These  last 
I  question,  after  each  article  of  the  Creed  as  it  is  recited, 
whether  they  believe  it,  and  after  they  have  answered  *  Yes/ 
I  give  them  an  instruction  in  their  own  language,  explaining 
the  chief  heads  of  the  Christian  religion  and  other  duties 
necessary  to  salvation.  Last  of  all  I  admit  them,  thus 
prepared,  to  baptism. 

"As  to  the  number  who  become  Christians,  you  may 
understand  from  this  that  it  often  happens  to  me  to   be 


INDIA  73 

hardly  able  to  use  my  hands  from  the  fatigue  of  baptizing ; 
often  in  a  single  day  I  have  baptized  whole  villages.  Some- 
times I  have  lost  my  voice  and  strength  altogether  with 
repeating  again  and  again  the  Creed  and  the  other  forms." 

In  a  letter  relating  to  a  missionary  tour  which  he  had 
made  through  Travancore,  he  speaks  of  having  baptized 
all  the  fishermen  (Machhas)  whom  he  could  possibly  meet 
with,  but  does  not  say  whether  these  baptisms  were 
preceded  by  any  kind  of  instruction. 

In  forming  an  opinion  on  the  methods  adopted  by 
Xavier,  it  is  only  fair  to  him  to  remember  that  he  was 
himself  profoundly  dissatisfied  with  the  results  which  his 
labours  produced.  In  a  letter  addressed  to  Ignatius 
Loyola  in  January  1549  he  writes: 

"  The  natives  [of  India]  are  so  terribly  wicked  that  they 
can  never  be  expected  to  embrace  Christianity.  It  is  so 
repellent  to  them  in  every  way  that  they  have  not  even 
patience  to  listen  when  we  address  them  on  the  subject ;  in 
fact,  one  might  just  as  well  invite  them  to  allow  themselves 
to  be  put  to  death  as  to  become  Christians.  We  must  now 
therefore  limit  ourselves  to  retaining  those  who  are  already 
Christians." 

From  first  to  last  Xavier  did  not  scruple  to  invoke  the 
aid  of  the  secular  powers  in  order  to  further  his  mission- 
ary projects.  He  obtained  authority  from  the  King  of 
Portugal  authorizing  him  to  punish  by  death  the  makers 
of  idols,  and  in  1543  he  urged  the  Portuguese  Viceroy  in 
India  to  support  the  claims  of  a  brother  of  the  King  of 
Jaffna,  who  offered  to  be  baptized  as  a  Christian  if  the 
Portuguese  would  establish  him  on  his  brother's  throne. 
With  reference  to  this  proposal  Xavier  wrote : 

"  In  Jaffna  and  on  the  opposite  coast  I  shall  easily  gain 
100,000  adherents  for  the  Church  of  Christ." 

Two  years  later,  in  the  course  of  a  letter  addressed  to 
the  King  of  Portugal,  he  wrote : 

"  I  have  discovered  a  unique,  but,  as  I  assuredly  believe, 
a  sure  means  ...  by  which  the  number  of  Christians  in 


74  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

this  land  may  without  doubt  be  greatly  increased.  ...  I 
demand  that  your  Majesty  shall  swear  a  solemn  oath  affirm- 
ing that  every  Governor  who  shall  neglect  to  disseminate 
the  knowledge  of  our  most  holy  faith  shall  be  punished  on 
his  return  to  Portugal  by  a  long  term  of  imprisonment  and 
by  confiscation  of  his  goods.  ...  I  will  content  myself  with 
assuring  you  that  if  every  Viceroy  or  Governor  were  con- 
vinced of  the  full  seriousness  of  such  an  oath,  the  whole  of 
Ceylon,  many  kings  on  the  Malabar  coast,  and  the  whole  of 
the  Cape  Comorin  district  would  embrace  Christianity 
within  a  year.  As  long,  however,  as  the  Viceroys  and 
Governors  are  not  forced  by  fear  of  disfavour  to  gain 
adherents  to  Christianity,  your  Majesty  need  not  expect 
that  any  considerable  success  will  attend  the  preaching  of 
the  gospel  in  India,  or  that  many  baptisms  will  take  place." 

After  the  departure  of  Xavier  the  Jesuit  missions 
continued  to  make  rapid  progress  on  the  lines  on  which  he 
had  started  them.  So  unsatisfactory  have  been  the  results 
that  Bishop  Caldwell,  who  spent  a  long  lifetime  in  South 
India,  and  knew  the  people  as  few  Europeans  have  learned 
to  know  them,  could  write  concerning  the  converts  con- 
nected with  the  Eoman  missions  in  Tinnevelly :  "In 
intellect  and  morals  they  do  not  differ  from  the  heathen 
in  the  smallest  degree."  As  the  Jesuit  missions  spread 
they  came  into  conflict  with  the  Syrian  Church  in  Travan- 
core,  the  metropolitan  of  which  they  burnt  in  1654. 

There  is  no  Christian  missionary  other  than  Xavier  in 
whose  case  it  is  more  necessary  to  separate  his  life  and 
character  from  his  methods  of  work,  if  we  are  to  do  justice 
to  the  former.  Of  his  self-devotion,  his  prayerfulness,  and 
his  capacity  for  inspiring  others  with  his  own  spirit  it  is 
hardly  possible  to  speak  too  highly.  The  record  of  his 
life  has  sent  many  to  the  mission  field,  and  has  helped  to 
sustain  their  faith  there,  and  to  support  them  in  times  of 
despondency  and  trouble.  But  whilst  we  thank  God  for 
the  many  virtues  which  he  possessed  and  which  have  placed 
his  name  high  in  the  roll  of  missionary  heroes,  we  cannot 
blind  our  eyes  to  the  fact  that  his  work  was  so  marred  by 
the  methods  of   missionary  enterprise  which  were  recog- 


INDIA  75 

nized  by  his  contemporaries,  and  which  he  adopted  as  his 
own,  that  it  is  at  least  open  to  question  whether  the  final 
conversion  of  India  to  the  Christian  faith  has  not  been 
retarded  by  the  work  done  by  himself  and  by  those  who 
followed  in  his  steps. 

In  1567  the  Governor  of  Goa,  at  the  suggestion  of 
the  Jesuit  missionaries,  issued  a  decree  ordering  that  in 
those  districts  of  Goa  which  yet  remained  heathen,  the 
pagodas  and  mosques  should  be  pulled  down  and  that 
orphans  under  fourteen  years  of  age  should  be  baptized. 
Similar  action  was  taken  in  the  other  Portuguese  settle- 
ments in  India,  Dr.  Eichter  estimates  the  number  of 
E.G.  missionaries  in  India  in  1590  as  500,  and  the 
number  of  converts  connected  with  these  missions  as 
254,000;  these  representing  the  result  of  ninety  years' 
work.  He  compares  these  results  with  those  obtained 
up  to  1870  by  about  the  same  number  of  Anglican  and 
Protestant  missionaries,  after  eighty  years'  work;  the 
number  of  converts  connected  with  these  missions  being 
then  224,000.  It  is  apparently  true  to  say  that  the 
numerical  results  obtained  by  Anglican  and  Protestant 
missionaries  in  the  face  of  frequent  opposition  on  the  part 
of  Government  authorities  were  approximately  equal  to 
those  which  the  E.G.  missionaries  obtained  when  backed 
by  the  material  forces  of  the  Portuguese  Government. 

The  next  great  missionary  to  India  was  Robert  di 
NoUli,  an  Italian,  who  reached  India  in  1605.  His 
work  is  deserving  of  special  attention  inasmuch  as  the 
principle  which  he  adopted  of  recognizing  and  accepting 
the  Indian  caste  system  has  been  accepted  to  a  greater 
or  less  extent  by  nearly  all  the  E.G.  missionaries  who  have 
since  laboured  in  India.  He  started  his  work  at  Madura,^ 
which  was  outside  the  region  in  which  Portuguese  political 
influence  prevailed.  Having  determined  to  make  himself 
an  Indian,  in  order  that  he  might  win  the  Indians,  he 
adopted  the  dress  and  the  sacred  thread  of  a  Brahman, 
and  painted  the  sandal-wood  sign    on  his  forehead.     He 

^  See  Letires  Edifiantes,  vol.  x.  pp.  46,  62. 


76  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

called  himself  a  Eajah  from  Eome,  and  eventually  pro- 
duced a  new  Veda,  which  he  had  himself  forged,  in  support 
of  his  own  teaching.  He  kept  aloof  from  men  belonging 
to  the  lower  castes  and  only  allowed  Brahmans,  or  men  of 
high  caste,  to  have  access  to  him.  The  principle  which 
underlay  his  action  was  sanctioned  by  a  Papal  Bull  in 
1623  which  declared  that  "  out  of  compassion  for  human 
weakness,  Nobili's  converts  are  permitted  to  retain  the 
plait  of  hair,  the  Brahmanical  thread,  the  sandal-wood 
sign  on  the  forehead,  and  the  customary  ablutions  of  their 
caste."  The  hair  and  thread  were,  however,  first  to  be 
sprinkled  with  holy  water.  After  more  than  fifty  years' 
work,  Nobili  died  at  Milapur  in  1656.  After  his  death 
the  Jesuit  missions  in  South  India  were  carried  on  on  the 
lines  which  he  had  inaugurated,  and  the  missionaries  who 
worked  amongst  the  higher  castes  refrained  from  any 
intercourse  with  those  who  worked  amongst  the  lower 
castes.  In  the  eighteenth  century,  when  it  was  found 
impossible  to  provide  Jesuit  missionaries  for  the  lower 
castes,  those  who  worked  amongst  the  Brahmans  were 
accustomed  to  administer  the  sacraments  at  dead  of  night 
outside  the  doors  of  the  higher  caste  churches. 

From  1690  to  1750  the  missionaries  and  converts 
were  subject  to  constant  persecutions,  and  one  at  least 
of  the  Jesuit  missionaries  suffered  martyrdom.  At  the 
time  of  Nobili's  death  the  Christians  connected  with 
this  mission  were  reckoned  at  100,000,  but  by  1815, 
according  to  Dubois,  himself  a  Jesuit,  these  numbers  had 
decreased  to  33,000. 

In  1703  Pope  Clement  xi.  commissioned  Tournon,  the 
Patriarch  of  Antioch,  to  visit  and  report  upon  the  methods 
which  had  been  adopted  by  the  Jesuits  in  this  mission. 
On  his  suggestion  the  Pope  published  a  decree  which 
condemned  several  of  the  practices  introduced  by  the 
Jesuits  and  contained  the  statement :  "  In  future,  refusal  of 
the  Holy  Sacrament  to  Pariahs  who  may  be  sick  will  no 
longer  be  permitted." 

Unfortunately  this  decree,  which  was  confirmed  later 


INDIA  77 

on  by  several  other  decrees,  failed  to  effect  any  funda- 
mental change  in  the  methods  which  had  been  adopted 
and  which  are  still  to  a  large  extent  followed.  The  writer 
of  this  volume  has  himself  seen  three  E.G.  churches  in  a 
village  not  far  from  Madura  which  are  used  by  Christians 
from  three  different  castes. 

In  considering  the  work  accomplished,  or  attempted, 
by  Eobert  di  Nobili,  we  need,  as  in  the  case  of  Xavier,  to 
distinguish  between  the  man  and  the  methods  which  he 
adopted.  Of  the  missionaries  who  have  laboured  in  India, 
few  have  lived  lives  of  such  continuous  self-denial,  or  have 
been  inspired  with  a  more  ardent  passion  to  effect  the 
conversion  of  the  Indians.  Whilst  we  deplore  the  super- 
ficial character  of  the  results  which  his  work  produced,  and 
the  methods  to  which  these  results  were  due  and  which  he 
bequeathed  to  his  successors,  we  cannot  withhold  our  ad- 
miration and  respect  for  the  Christ-like  enthusiasm  which 
was  the  motive  power  of  his  life. 

At  the  time  that  Nobili  was  living  in  Madura,  the 
Jesuit  missionaries  at  the  Court  of  Akbar  in  North  India 
were  prosecuting  their  labours  with  a  large  amount  of 
success.  In  1610  three  princes  of  the  royal  blood  received 
baptism  in  Lahore  at  the  hands  of  Geronimo  Xavier,  a 
nephew  of  St.  Francis  Xavier.  Akbar  himself  reverenced 
"  the  images  of  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Virgin  when  they 
were  shown  to  him  by  the  missionaries,  and  solicited 
permission,  reluctantly  accorded,  to  retain  them  in  his 
palace  for  a  single  night."  ^ 

Another  name  deserving  of  special  mention  is  that  of 
Juan  de  Brito,  the  son  of  a  Viceroy  of  Brazil,  and  for  a 
time  one  of  the  royal  pages  at  Lisbon.  He  arrived  in 
India  in  1673,  and  in  the  course  of  a  few  years  baptized 
with  his  own  hands  many  thousands  of  converts,  who  had, 
however,  received  a  far  more  careful  preparation  than  many 
of  those  who  had  been  baptized  by  his  predecessors.      On 

1  Elphinstone's  History  of  India,  vol.  ii.  p.  323.  Many  thousands  were 
baptized,  and  it  seemed  for  a  time  as  though  Christianity  were  about  to 
supplant  Islam  and  Hinduism  in  North  India. 


78  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

several  occasions  he  was  imprisoned  and  tortured,  and  at 
length,  on  February  3,  1693,  he  suffered  death  as  a  martyr. 

Another  member  of  the  Society  of  Jesus  who  was 
martyred  a  few  years  later,  Xavier  Borghesey  when  bidden 
by  his  heathen  judge  to  refrain  from  mentioning  the  Holy 
Name,  replied,  "  Think  you  that  I  left  my  country  and  all 
that  was  dear  to  me  on  earth,  and  came  here  to  preach  the 
law  of  the  true  God,  which  I  have  preached  for  so  many 
years,  only  to  keep  silence  now  ?  I  declare  to  you  that,  so 
far  from  obeying  your  command,  I  will  employ  all  that 
remains  to  me  of  life  and  power  to  make  new  disciples 
to  the  God  of  heaven."  ^  "  We  will  see,"  said  the  judge, 
"  whether  your  disciples  have  as  much  courage  as  yourself," 
and  then  he  ordered  his  soldiers  to  break  the  bones  of  one 
of  his  catechists.  When  the  catechist  heard  the  command 
which  had  been  given,  he  exclaimed,  "  Now  I  begin  to  be 
truly  your  disciple.  Do  not  fear,  my  father,  that  I  shall 
do  anything  unworthy  of  a  Christian." 

Another  E.G.  missionary  whose  name  is  deserving 
of  mention  is  the  Abbe  Dubois,  who  went  to  India  on 
the  outbreak  of  the  French  Eevolution  and  remained 
there  for  thirty-two  years,  living  a  simple  and  self- 
denying  life.  He  laboured  amongst  the  E.G.  Christians  in 
South  India,  whom  he  describes  in  pessimistic  language. 
"  I  must  confess,"  he  wrote,  "  with  shame  and  humiliation, 
that  there  was  not  a  single  member  of  them  of  whom  it 
could  be  said  that  he  had  accepted  Christianity  save  for 
some  objectionable  secondary  consideration."  He  returned 
to  France  in  1823,  expressing  the  belief  that  missionary 
work  in  South  India  had  been  and  was  likely  to  be  a 
complete  failure.  The  book  which  he  published  on  the 
manners  and  customs  of  India  is  a  standard  work  of 
reference. 

Anglican  and  Protestant  Missions. 

Long  before  the  advent  of  the  first  Anglican  or 
Protestant  missionaries  Anglican  chaplains  were  sent  out 

1  Lettrcs  Edifantes,  vol.  x.  p.  210. 


INDIA  79 

by  the  East  India  Company,  and  especially  in  the  early 
years  were  allowed  or  even  encouraged  by  the  Company 
to  take  an  interest  in  the  religious  welfare  of  the  Indians 
with  whom  they  were  brought  into  contact.  Between 
1667  and  1700  eighteen  chaplains  were  provided  by  the 
Company,  the  first  being  sent  to  Madras  in  1667. 

The  first  Indian  to  become  a  Christian  as  a  result  of 
the  missionary  efforts  of  a  representative  of  the  Anglican 
Church  was,  perhaps,  an  Indian  from  Bengal,  who  was 
baptized  in  1616.  According  to  a  minute  contained  in 
the  Court  Minute  Book  of  the  East  India  Company  at 
Masulipatam,  which  is  dated  August  19,  1614,  Captain 
Best  took  home  a  young  Indian  who  was  instructed  by 
Mr.  Patrick  Copland,  or  Copeland,  the  preacher,  one  of 
the  first  chaplains  to  travel  in  the  Company's  ships  to 
Masulipatam.  On  December  22,  1616,  the  lad  was 
baptized,  after  consultation  with  the  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, in  the  presence  of  some  members  of  the  Privy 
Council,  Lord  Mayor  and  Aldermen,  and  also  the  members 
of  the  East  India  Company,  and  the  sister  company  of 
Virginia.  He  received  the  name  of  Peter,  chosen  by  the 
King  (James  I.).  Some  Latin  letters  exist  written  by  the 
lad  signed  "  Peter  Papa."  He  seems  to  have  gone  with 
Mr.  Copeland  to  Virginia.  It  is  not  possible  to  determine 
the  actual  place  of  his  birth,  but  it  is  certain  that  he 
came  from  the  Bay  of  Bengal,  that  he  was  taught  by 
a  visiting  chaplain  to  Masulipatam,  and  that  he  was  taken 
home  at  the  Company's  expense. 

1750-1820. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  work  of  the  Danish 
and  Moravian  missions  to  India  down  to  1750.  On 
July  16  of  this  year  Christian  Friedrich  Schwartz 
landed  at  Cuddalore  and  continued  to  work  in  South 
India  till  his  death  in  1798  (aged  seventy-two).  After 
working  at  Tranquebar  for  ten  years  he  moved  to  Trichin- 
opoly,  where    he   laboured   for  sixteen  years  (1762-78), 


80  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Trichinopoly  then  belonged  to    the  Mohammedan  Nawab 
of  Arcot,  who  was  an  ally  of  the  English.     It  contained 
an  English  garrison,  and  in  1767  Schwartz  ceased  to  be 
connected  with  the  Danish  Mission  and  became  an  English 
chaplain  and  was  in  part  supported  by  the  S.P.C.K.     He 
was  a  Lutheran  and  did  not  receive  Anglican  Orders.     In 
1763   he  visited  Tanjore  and,  at  the  request  of  its  Kajah, 
settled  there  in   1778   and  made    this  the    centre  of  his 
work  till    his  death.     His    reputation    for  probity  spread 
throughout    South    India  and    became  a  distinct  asset  to 
the    English    Government.      Thus    Colonel  Fullerton,    the 
Commander  ©f  the  British  army  in  South  India,  wrote  in 
1783:  "The  knowledge  and  integrity  of  this  irreproach- 
able missionary  have  retrieved  the  character  of  Europeans 
from  imputations    of  general    depravity."     The    Rajah   of 
Tanjore    before    his    death    in    1787    desired    to    appoint 
Schwartz  as  the  guardian  of  his  heir  and  Eegent  of  his 
kingdom.       Two    years     after    his    death     Schwartz     was 
appointed  to  both  these  posts  by  the  English  authorities. 
He  entrusted  the  care  of  the  young  Rajah  to  his  colleague 
Gerick^    at    Madras    till    his  accession  to  the    throne    in 
1796.     The    important    political    offices   which    Schwartz 
filled    naturally    affected    his   work  as    a  missionary,  and 
many  accepted    Christianity    under    the    influence  of    the 
"  royal   priest   of    Tanjore "   who    were    not    Christians  at 
heart.     He  travelled  extensively  throughout  South  India 
and  established  a  considerable  number  of  schools,  and  at 
the    time    of    his    death,   in    1798,    the   total  number  of 
Christian  adherents    connected    with   the  Danish  Mission 
was  about  20,000.     Between  1706  and  1846,  57  mission- 
aries   connected    with    this    mission    went    out    to    India, 
of    whom    20   died  at  Tranquebar,  the   chief    educational 
centre  of    the  mission.      When   the    Tanjore  Mission  was 
handed    over  to    the   S.P.G.    in    1825,  there  were  about 
2000  persons  in  the   congregations  and   700   children  in 
the  schools.      During    the  ten  years   which    followed   the 
adherents  increased  to  4300. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  Schwartz,  together  with 


INDIA  81 

his  adopted  son,  J.  C.  Kohlhoff,  and  his  son,  J.  B.  V 
Kohlhoff  of  Tranquebar,  worked  in  South  India  for  an 
aggregate  period  of  156  years. 

The  permanent  results  of  Schwartz's  work  were  disap- 
pointing, but  when  we  consider  the  conditions  under  which 
it  was  carried  on,  it  is  hard  to  see  how  a  better  foundation 
for  subsequent  work  could  have  been  laid.  He  deliber- 
ately refrained  from  using  the  political  influence  which  he 
possessed  as  prime  minister  of  the  Eajah  of  Tanjore  in 
order  to  increase  the  number  of  baptisms,  and  those  whom 
he  baptized  had  for  the  most  part  an  intelhgent  knowledge 
of  their  new  faith ;  but  the  wide  area  over  which  his 
activities  were  spread,  and  the  difficulty  of  sending  efficient 
teachers  to  carry  on  the  various  mission  centres  which  he 
created,  gave  to  his  work  a  superficial  character  which  he 
would  have  been  the  first  to  deplore. 

Six  years  before  his  death  there  had  landed  in  Bengal 
one  who  may  be  regarded  as  one  of  the  greatest  mission- 
aries who  have  set  foot  in  India,  William  Carey,  a  cobbler 
who  was  sent  out  by  the  newly  formed  Baptist  Missionary 
Society.  He  was  so  far  from  possessing  the  material  and 
political  support  which  Xavier  enjoyed,  and  which  in  a 
lesser  degree  Schwartz  obtained,  that  the  East  India 
Company  refused  him  permission  to  work  anywhere  within 
the  sphere  of  its  influence,  and  he  was  compelled  to  retire 
to  Serampore,  a  mission  station  which  had  been  occupied  but 
abandoned  by  Moravian  missionaries,  and  which  belonged 
to  the  kingdom  of  Denmark.  Carey's  first  companions 
were  Marshman,  who  had  been  a  ragged-school  teacher,  and 
Ward,  a  printer — a  trio  of  missionary  heroes  and  geniuses 
to  which  it  would  be  impossible  to  suggest  a  parallel.  By 
the  beginning  of  1800  Carey  had  translated  the  whole  of 
the  New  Testament  into  Bengali.  The  style  of  Bengali 
writing  which  he  created  in  doing  this,  and  which  was 
specially  distinguished  by  his  efforts  to  enrich  its  vocabu- 
lary by  a  liberal  borrowing  of  Sanskrit  words,  has  affected 
all  Bengali  prose  literature  which  has  since  been  published. 
In  1801  he  was  appointed  by  Lord  Wellesley  master  of 
6 


82  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

the  new  college  in  Calcutta  which  had  been  erected  for  che 
training  of  Anglo-Indian  officials,  and  he  subsequently  filled 
the  posts  of  Professor  of  Bengali,  Sanskrit,  and  Marathi. 

Amongst  many  books  which  he  published  were  a 
Sanskrit  grammar  and  dictionary.  He  also  edited  three 
volumes  of  the  Eamayana  and  other  Sanskrit  works,  and 
before  his  death  in  1834  he  had  translated  the  whole 
Bible  into  Bengali,  Hindi,  Marathi,  and  Sanskrit.  These 
translations  were  imperfect,  and  were  eventually  replaced 
by  completely  new  versions,  but  their  production  testifies 
to  the  marvellous  enthusiasm  and  industry  of  their  author. 
The  Serampore  Brotherhood  sent  out  missionaries  or 
missionary  agents  to  places  as  far  distant  as  Benares,  Agra, 
Delhi,  and  Bombay  in  the  one  direction,  and  to  Burma,  the 
Moluccas,  and  Java  in  the  opposite  direction.  They  also 
started  work  at  Barisal,  Dacca,  Chitagong,  Dinajpur,  and 
Katwa  in  Bengal,  and  among  the  Khasia  tribes  in  Assam. 
Many  of  these  stations  were  eventually  handed  over  to 
other  missionary  societies.  In  1816  the  missionaries  at 
Serampore  separated  from  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society, 
but  on  their  death  the  greater  part  of  their  work  passed 
into  the  hands  of  this  society.  In  1818  they  commenced 
the  foundation  of  a  college  which  was  intended  to  expand 
into  a  university  with  a  view  to  the  education  and  training  of 
Indian  missionaries.  To  this  college  the  King  of  Denmark 
granted  the  right  to  confer  degrees. 

After  the  death  of  the  three  missionary  founders  the 
college  was  carried  on  with  decreasing  effectiveness  till 
1883,  when  it  came  to  an  end.  After  this  date  it  became 
a  Baptist  seminary  for  preachers  and  teachers  in  Bengal, 
and  has  recently  been  reorganized  as  an  arts  college  with 
a  theological  faculty  on  an  undenominational  basis. 

The  distinguishing  characteristic  of  Carey's  work  was 
his  adoption  of  the  principle  of  concentration.  It  is  true 
that  he  sent  agents  to  distribute  his  translations  of  the 
Bible  and  to  attempt  to  found  mission  stations  in  places 
far  distant  from  Serampore,  but  his  life-work  was  the 
establishment  of  the  training  college  at  Serampore  and  of 


INDIA  83 

the  group  of  schools  in  its  neighbourhood.  To  a  far 
greater  extent  than  any  of  his  predecessors  he  realized  the 
comparative  futility  of  diffused  missions  and  the  impossi- 
bility of  converting  India  by  means  of  European  evangelists. 
By  concentrating  the  greater  part  of  his  activities  within  a 
narrow  circle,  and  by  spending  his  time  upon  the  education 
and  training  of  Indian  teachers,  he  inaugurated  a  new 
method  of  missionary  work  the  importance  of  which  it  is 
impossible  to  exaggerate. 

Dr.  Mylne,  formerly  Bishop  of  Bombay,  writes : 

"  If  ever  a  heaven-sent  genius  wrought  a  conquest  over 
obstacles  and  disabilities  it  was  .  .  .  this  humbly-born 
Englishman.  Not  only  was  he  born  in  low  station  .  .  .  but 
he  received  hardly  any  education.  .  .  .  And  this  man  before 
he  died  took  part  in  translating  the  Bible  into  some  forty 
languages  or  dialects,  Chinese  among  the  number!  He 
started  in  life  as  a  cobbler — would  never  let  anyone  claim 
for  him  the  more  dignified  title  of  shoemaker — he  died  a 
professor  of  Sanskrit,  the  honoured  friend  and  adviser  of 
the  Government  whose  earliest  greeting,  when  he  landed  on 
the  shores  of  the  country,  had  been  to  prohibit  him  from 
preaching.  He  founded  a  notable  college  (Serampore)  for 
the  training  of  native  missionaries.  .  .  .  But  the  one  grand 
merit  of  Carey,  without  which  his  marvellous  qualities  had 
been  lost  like  those  of  his  predecessors,  was  that  he,  with 
the  intuition  of  genius,  set  to  work  instinctively  from  the 
first  on  the  lines  of  the  concentrated  mission.  There  was 
no  diffusion  of  his  energies  over  impossible  tracts  of  country 
and  impracticable  numbers  of  converts.  A  few  really 
Christianized  people,  with  the  means  of  future  extension — 
this  he  seems  to  have  set  before  him  as  his  object.  He  left 
no  great  body  of  converts,  but  he  laid  a  solid  foundation,  to 
be  built  on  by  those  who  should  succeed  him.  ...  I  should 
hardly  be  saying  too  much  did  I  lay  down  that  subsequent 
missions  have  proved  to  be  successful,  or  the  opposite,  in  a 
proportion  fairly  exact  to  their  adoption  of  Carey's  methods."  ^ 

In  1797  the  S.P.C.K.  sent  the  Eev.  W.  T.  Bingeltauhe 
as  a  missionary  to  Calcutta.  He  returned  after  two  years, 
and  was  then  sent  out  by  the  L.M.S.  to  Travancore. 
Between   1806    and    1815  he  was    stationed  at  Myladi, 

^  Missions  to  Hindus,  p.  12^  f, 


84  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

where  his  work  resulted  in  the  conversion  of  more  than 
1000  of  the  Shans.  Of  these,  677  were  admitted  to 
Holy  Communion  in  1812. 

Of  the  Anglican  chaplains  who  did  much  to  promote 
a  missionary  spirit  in  Calcutta  in  the  early  part  of 
the  nineteenth  century  the  Kev.  David  Brown  and  the 
Eev.  Claudius  Buchanan  deserve  special  mention.  The 
Rev.  T.  Thomason  and  the  Eev.  Daniel  Corrie,  who 
acted  as  chaplains  up  the  country,  also  contributed  much 
to  create  interest  in  missions  both  at  home  and  in 
India.  Yet  another  chaplain  whose  name  is  still  more 
widely  known  was  the  Rev.  Henry  Martyn  (1781- 
1812).  Landing  in  Calcutta  in  1806,  he  commenced 
the  study  of  Hindustani,  Hindi,  Persian,  and  Arabic,  and 
within  five  years  he  had  translated  the  New  Testament 
and  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  into  the  first  of  these 
languages.  In  1811  he  proceeded  to  Persia.  After 
spending  ten  months  in  Shiraz,  where  he  translated  the 
greater  part  of  the  New  Testament  into  Persian,  he  set  out 
on  his  return  to  Europe  via  Asia  Minor.  Worn  out  by 
mental  and  physical  strain,  he  died  at  Tokat  at  the  age 
of  thirty-one.  Although  he  apparently  made  but  one 
convert,  and  his  translations  needed  much  revision, 
his  life  and  death  did  much  to  inaugurate  a  new 
interest  in  missionary  work  both  in  India  and  else- 
where. The  romance  connected  with  his  scholarship — 
he  had  graduated  at  Cambridge  as  senior  wrangler — and 
with  his  early  death,  far  from  the  help  of  friends,  helped 
to  attract  the  attention  of  many  who  had  taken  no  interest 
in  missions  to  the  cause  to  which  he  had  given  his  life, 
and  the  ardent  faith  and  piety  which  are  reflected  in  the 
letters  that  were  subsequently  published  inspired  many 
who  read  them  to  become  missionaries  in  their  turn.  His 
only  convert,  Abdul  Masih,  was  ordained  by  Bishop  Heber 
in  1826  and  was  the  second  Indian  to  receive  Anglican 
Orders.  The  first  was  a  Ceylon  catechist,  Christian  David, 
who  was  ordained  by  Bishop  Heber  in  1824. 

The  year    1813,   in  which   the   Charter  of   the  East 


INDIA  85 

India  Company  was  renewed  and  modified  by  Parliament, 
was  a  critical  year  in  the  history  of  Indian  missions.  A 
clause  was  then  inserted  in  the  Charter  the  effect  of  which 
would  be  to  authorize  and  encourage  the  sending  out  of 
Christian  missionaries.  A  similar  clause  had  been  suggested 
twenty  years  before,  but  was  then  vehemently  opposed 
by  some  of  the  Directors,  one  of  whom,  Mr.  Bensley, 
speaking  at  an  assembly  of  the  General  Court  held  on 
May  23,  1793,  at  the  East  India  House,  said:  "So 
far  from  approving  the  proposed  clause  or  listening  to  it 
with  patience,  from  the  first  moment  I  heard  of  it  I  con- 
sidered it  the  most  wild,  extravagant,  expensive,  and 
unjustifiable  project  that  ever  was  suggested  by  the  most 
visionary  speculator." 

One  of  the  clauses  in  the  new  Charter  ordered  the 
appointment  of  a  bishop  and  three  archdeacons  for  the 
oversight  of  work  amongst  Europeans  in  India.  Bishop 
Middleton,  who  was  consecrated  in  1814,  founded  Bishops' 
College,  Calcutta,  the  object  of  which  was  to  train  Indian 
Christians  to  become  preachers,  catechists,  and  teachers, 
and  to  serve  as  a  centre  for  translation  and  other  literary 
work.  The  college,  which  was  established  at  a  cost  of 
£60,000,  was  placed  under  the  supervision  of  the  S.P.G. 
Its  foundation-stone  was  laid  in  1820,  and  the  Eev.  W.  H. 
Mill,  Fellow  of  Trinity  College,  Cambridge,  was  appointed 
as  its  first  Principal.  The  Bishop  of  Calcutta  reported  in 
1837  that  "the  amount  of  good  already  effected  by  the 
College  was  really  surprising,"  and  in  1840  it  was  stated 
that  there  were  1800  Christians  in  the  Barripore  and 
Tollygunge  missions  as  a  result  of  the  influence  exerted  by 
the  College.  But  despite  these  and  other  encouraging 
reports  of  a  later  date,  it  cannot  be  maintained  that  the 
College  has  so  far  fulfilled  the  hopes  of  its  founders. 
When,  however,  the  new  scheme  for  its  removal  from 
Calcutta  and  its  reconstitution  has  been  carried  into  effect, 
there  is  good  reason  to  hope  that  it  may  do  much  to  help 
forward  the  work  of  Anglican  missions  not  merely  in  Bengal 
but  throughout  India. 


86  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  work  of  Eingeltaube, 
which  was  begun  in  Travancore  in  1806.  By  1835  the 
total  number  of  converts  connected  with  his  mission 
numbered  11,000.  In  certain  districts  of  Tinnevelly  not 
far  removed  from  the  scene  of  his  labours  the  Eev.  C.  T. 
Ehenius,  who  was  in  Lutheran  Orders  but  was  employed 
by  the  C.M.S.,  began  work  in  1820,  and  was  so  successful 
that  by  1835  there  were  nearly  12,000  baptized  Christians 
living  in  2  6 1  villages,  and  nearly  3000  children  were  under 
instruction  in  107  schools. 

The  work  in  Tinnevelly,  which  was  at  first  supported 
by  the  S.P.C.K.  and  for  which  the  S.P.G.  a  little  later 
became  responsible,  was  started  by  Schwartz,  who  dedicated 
the  first  church  in  Palamcottah  in  1785.  There  were 
at  that  time  40  baptized  Christians.  In  1803  the 
Eev.  C.  W.  Gericke,  a  colleague  of  Schwartz,  visited  this 
mission  and  took  part  in  one  of  the  "  mass  movements " 
towards  Christianity  for  which  Tinnevelly  subsequently 
became  famous.  In  a  single  tour  he  baptized  1300  people 
who  had  been  carefully  prepared,  and  an  Indian  missionary, 
Satthianadhan,  soon  afterwards  baptized  2700  more.  By 
1835  the  total  number  of  Christians  connected  with  the 
English  and  Danish  missions  in  South  Travancore  and 
Tinnevelly  was  about  30,000. 

After  the  death  of  Schwartz,  Janicke  (1795),  and 
Gericke  (1803),  the  work  of  the  Danish  Mission  rapidly 
dwindled.  The  enthusiasm  of  its  missionaries  in  the 
field  seemed  to  decline,  and  it  became  increasingly  difficult 
to  provide  them  with  successors  from  Europe.  By  1840 
the  greater  part  of  the  mission  stations  had  been  transferred 
to  the  S.P.G.  and  nearly  all  were  occupied  by  English 
missionaries  in  Anglican  Orders.  In  1835,  Archdeacon 
Corrie  was  consecrated  as  the  first  Anglican  Bishop  of 
Madras. 

Caste  in  the  Christian  Church. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  results  produced  by 
the  recognition  of  caste  within  the  Christian  Church  by 


INDIA  87 

E.C.  missionaries  in  South  India.^  Their  recognition  of 
caste  rendered  it  extremely  difficult  for  the  Danish  and 
German  missionaries  to  do  otherwise  than  follow  their 
example.  With  few  exceptions,  they  permitted  the  Sudras 
and  Pariahs  to  observe  their  caste  distinctions,  to  sit 
apart  in  church,  and  to  receive  the  Holy  Communion  on 
separate  occasions.  The  Eev.  C.  T.  Ehenius  was  one  of 
the  earliest  missionaries  to  make  a  decided  stand  against 
the  observance  of  caste.  Bishop  Wilson  of  Calcutta,  who 
visited  South  India  in  1833,  issued  a  pastoral  letter  in 
which  he  said,  "  The  distinction  of  caste  must  be  abandoned, 
decidedly,  immediately,  and  finally."  He  further  described 
caste  as  "  eating  as  doth  a  cancer  into  the  vitals  of  our 
infant  Churches."  When  his  pastoral  letter  was  read  in 
Vepery  Church,  Madras,  the  Sudra  Christians  rose  and  left 
the  church,  and  for  the  time  being  renounced  their 
membership  of  the  Christian  Church.  In  Tanjore  the 
reading  of  the  pastoral  caused  a  similar  upheaval  and 
produced  but  little  permanent  result. 

We  have  not  space  in  which  to  discuss  the  significance 
of  caste  observances  or  the  grounds  on  which  they  appear 
to  be  inconsistent  with  the  spirit  of  Christianity.  It  is 
sufficient  to  say  that  an  overwhelming  majority  of  the 
most  intelligent  and  the  most  successful  missionaries  who 
have  laboured  in  India  have  agreed  with  the  view 
expressed  by  Bishop  Wilson. 

Nehemiah  Goreh,  himself  a  Brahmin  convert  and  one 
of  the  most  remarkable  missionaries  of  Indian  nationahty, 
once  said,  "  Christianity  with  caste  would  be  no  Christianity 
at  all."  2 

The  General  Missionary  Conference  which  met  in  India 
in  1902  passed  this  resolution: 

"  The  Conference  would  earnestly  emphasize  the  deliver- 
ance of  the  South  India  Missionary  Conference  of  1900. 
namely,  that  caste,  wherever  it  exists  in  the  Church,  be 
treated  as  a  great  evil  to  be  discouraged  and  repressed.  It 
is  further  of  opinion  that  in  no  case  should  any  person  who 

1  See  p.  76.  "^  Lifo  of  Father  Qoreh,  p.  7. 


88  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

breaks  the  law  of  Christ  by  observing  caste  hold  any  officx3 
in  connection  with  the  Church,  and  it  earnestly  appeals  to 
all  Indian  Christians  to  use  all  lawful  means  to  eradicate  so 
unchristian  a  system." 

Ever  since  the  establishment  of  Protestant  missions 
in  South  India  the  Lutheran  missionaries,  and  especially 
those  connected  with  the  Leipzig  Missionary  Society, 
have  practically  condoned  the  observance  of  caste  by 
the  Christian  converts.  The  Anglican  and  the  other 
Protestant  missionaries  have  striven  with  varying,  but 
on  the  whole  with  very  incomplete,  success  to  put  an  end 
to  its  observance. 

Alexander  Duff  and  his  work  (1830-57). 

Of  the  pioneer  missionaries  whose  labours  have  left  a 
permanent  impression  upon  missionary  work  in  India  and 
to  whom  we  have  already  referred,  four  names  stand  out 
pre-eminent — Xavier,  Nobili,  Schwartz,  and  Carey.  To 
these  we  should  now  add  that  of  Alexander  Duff}  Dr. 
Duff,  who  landed  at  Calcutta  in  1830,  after  being  twice 
shipwrecked  on  his  outward  voyage,  was  the  first  missionary 
sent  out  by  the  Established  Church  of  Scotland.  He  at 
once  resolved  to  strike  out  what  was  then  a  new  line  of 
missionary  policy  and  attempt  to  influence  the  higher 
castes  of  North  India  by  providing  schools  in  which, 
through  the  medium  of  the  English  language,  a  liberal 
education  should  be  offered  to  all  who  were  willing  to 
receive  Christian  instruction  at  the  hands  of  missionaries. 
In  adopting  the  English  language  as  the  chief  medium  of 
instruction  he  did  not  desire  to  discountenance  the  use 
of  the  vernacular  languages,  but  he  was  convinced  that 
the  use  of  these  was  incompatible  with  the  imparting  of 
a  comprehensive  education,  and  still  more  that  they  were 
inadequate  to  express  the  fundamental  conceptions  of 
Christian  doctrines.  In  carrying  out  his  scheme  he 
obtained  the  assistance  of  Eam  Mohan  Eoy,  the  founder 

1  See  Life  of  Alexander  Duffy  by  Geo.  Smith. 


INDIA  89 

of  the  Brahmo  Samaj.  The  first  school  which  he  opened 
in  Calcutta  in  July  1830  proved  so  great  a  success  and 
seemed  likely  to  result  in  the  conversion  of  so  many  of 
its  scholars,  that  the  Hindu  newspapers  announced  that 
anyone  continuing  to  send  his  son  to  school  would  be 
driven  out  of  caste.  The  school  thereupon  emptied,  but 
only  to  fill  again  to  the  very  last  place  before  the  end  of 
a  week.  With  a  few  interruptions  Duff  continued  his 
work  in  Calcutta  till  1863.  His  converts  were  not 
numbered  by  thousands,  or  even  by  hundreds,  but  they 
included  a  large  number  of  high  caste  Hindus  whose 
brilliant  mental  gifts  and  whose  strength  of  character 
liave  exercised  an  immense  influence  upon  their  fellow- 
countrymen  in  North  India. 

Amongst  the  names  widely  known  in  India  are  Krishna 
Mohan  Banerjea,  Gopinath  Nundy,  Mohesh  Chunder 
Ghose,  and  Anando  Chunder  Mozumdar.  Not  only  in 
the  schools  started  by  Duff,  but  in  other  schools  and 
colleges  which  were  founded  as  an  indirect  result  of  his 
work,  conversions  from  amongst  members  of  the  highest 
and  most  distinguished  families  took  place  during  this 
period.  Amongst  the  number  of  important  colleges  which 
were  founded  during  Duff's  time  in  India  may  be  mentioned 
the  Eobert  Noble  College  at  Masulipatam  (C.M.S.),  1841  ; 
St.  John's  College  at  Agra  (C.M.S.),  1853;  the  General 
Assembly's  school,  afterwards  known  as  "  the  Christian 
College,"  in  Madras,  1837;  St.  Thomas'  College,  Colombo 
(S.P.G.),  1851 ;  Almora  College  (L.M.S.),  1851 ;  Trichinopoly 
College  (S.P.G.),  1863;  the  Forman  College,  Lahore 
(A.U.P.M.),  refounded  in  1886. 

A  colleague  of  Duff,  Dr.  John  Wilson,  founded  the 
college  in  Bombay  which  now  bears  his  name. 

The  influence  which  Duff  exerted  upon  the  Government 
of  India  was  at  least  as  important  as  that  which  he 
exerted  upon  those  who  were  responsible  for  the  control  of 
missions.  The  trend  of  its  policy  and  the  course  of  legisla- 
tion were  profoundly  affected  by  Duff,  and  had  he  done  no 
direct  missionary  work  he  would  still  have  left  a  permanent 


90  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

impress  upon  the  development  of  education  throughout 
India.  No  sooner  had  the  success  of  Duff's  initial  efforts 
become  apparent  than  the  Government  of  India — Lord 
Bentinck  being  then  the  Governor-General  and  Sir  Charles 
Trevelyan  one  of  his  chief  advisers — issued  a  minute 
(1835)  in  which  it  was  stated  that  it  was  the  desire  of 
the  Government  to  naturalize  European  literature  and 
science  and  to  foster  English  culture.  Later  on,  and  after 
consultation  with  Duff,  the  Government  announced  the 
establishment  of  a  department  of  Public  Instruction  in 
each  of  the  Presidencies,  and  in  1857  founded  universities 
in  Calcutta,  Madras,  and  Bombay.  These  were  eventually 
supplemented  by  the  foundation  of  one  at  Lahore  in  1882 
and  one  at  Allahabad  in  1887.  During  this  period  the 
system  of  grant-in-aid  was  also  established  by  which 
government  grants  could  be  claimed  by  missionary  or 
other  schools  which  provided  a  secular  education  up  to  a 
given  standard.  This  system  has  made  it  possible  for 
missionary  societies  to  establish  and  carry  on  mission 
schools  at  little  or,  in  some  instances,  at  no  cost  to  their 
own  funds. 

Indian  Christians  in  1851, 

In  1851  the  first  attempt  was  made  to  count  the 
number  of  Christians  connected  with  the  Anglican  and 
Protestant  missionary  societies  in  India.  The  statistics 
obtained,  though  incomplete  and  less  accurate  than  those 
which  were  subsequently  available,  enable  us  to  form  some 
idea  of  the  progress  of  these  missions  up  to  the  middle  of  last 
century.  The  number  of  Christians  in  1851  was  91,092, 
they  formed  267  congregations,  and  14,661  of  them  were 
communicants.  Of  these,  24,613  were  connected  with  the 
C.M.S.  Tinnevelly  Mission,  10,315  with  the  S.P.G.  Mission 
in  the  same  district,  and  16,427  with  the  L.M.S.  Mission 
in  South  Travancore.  These  three  missions  claimed 
51,355  out  of  the  74,176  Christians  in  the  Madras 
Presidency.  The  remaining  number  included  those  who 
had  become  converts  in  connection  with  the  old  Danish 


INDIA  91 

missions  in  the  Cauvery  districts.  In  the  whole  of  the 
rest  of  India  there  were  only  16,916  converts,  of  whom 
14,177  were  in  Bengal.  Of  these,  4417  were  connected 
with  the  G.M.S.,  3476  with  the  S.P.G.,  and  1600  with  the 
Baptist  mission. 

Of  the  339  ordained  missionaries  in  India  at  this  time 
the  C.M.S.  had  64,  the  L.M.S.  49,  the  S.P.G.  35,  the 
Baptists  30,  the  Basel  Missionary  Society  23,  and  the 
American  Board  22. 

The  advent  of  American  missionaries. 

The  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign 
Missions  (A.B.C.F.M.)  sent  their  first  missionaries  to  India 
in  1812,  but,  owing  to  the  opposition  of  the  East  India 
Company,  they  were  not  allowed  to  remain  in  Calcutta. 
In  1813  they  started  work  in  Bombay,  but  little  progress 
was  made  till  1833,  when  they  crossed  over  from  Ceylon, 
where  they  had  been  previously  at  work,  and  founded  a 
series  of  mission  stations  at  Madura  and  in  the  surrounding 
districts.  Soon  afterwards  they  began  work  in  Madras 
and  in  the  Arcot  district.  In  1831  they  began  work  in 
Ahmadnagar,  which  subsequently  developed  into  their 
Maratha  Mission. 

The  American  Presbyterians  started  work  in  the  United 
Provinces  and  subsequently  in  the  Punjab.  Their  first 
station  was  opened  at  Ludhiana  in  1834.  Later  on  they 
opened  stations  at  Allahabad  (1836)  and  Fatehgarh 
(1838),  and  in  the  Punjab  at  Jullundur  (1846),  Ambala 
(1848),  and  Lahore  (1849).  They  were  the  first  Protestant 
missionaries  to  work  in  the  Punjab. 

The  American  Baptists  started  their  Telugu  Mission 
in  1840  and  their  mission  to  Assam  in  1841.  For 
a  long  time  neither  of  these  societies  made  any  great 
progress. 

The  American  United  Presbyterians  started  work  at 
Sialkot  in  1855. 


92  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Lutheran  Missionary  Societies, 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  work  of  the  German 
missionaries  who  went  out  to  India  in  connection  with 
the  Danish -Halle  missions.  The  Basel  Missionary  Society, 
which  was  founded  in  1815,  began  work  at  Mangalore  on 
the  south-west  coast  in  1834,  and  a  little  later  at 
Dharwar  (1837)  and  Hubli  (1839)  in  the  South  Maratha 
country. 

The  Leipzig  Missionary  Society,  which  was  founded  in 
1836,  took  over  the  work  amongst  the  Tamils  in  1840 
which  had  been  carried  on  by  the  Danish-Halle  mission. 

Pastor  Gossner,  after  severing  his  connection  with  the 
Berlin  Missionary  Society  in  1836,  sent  out  missionaries, 
who  commenced  work  at  Hadjipore  (1839),  and  other 
places  on  the  river  Ganges.  Later  on,  in  1845,  he  began 
the  work  amongst  the  Kols  of  Chota  Nagpur  which  was 
to  develop  into  one  of  the  most  successful  missions  in 
North  India.  For  a  further  reference  to  Lutheran  societies 
in  India,  see  pp.  121,  124. 

The  Mutiny  (1857). 

Exactly  a  century  after  the  battle  of  Plassey,  which 
gave  India  to  England,  North  India  was  convulsed 
with  war  and  massacre  and  many  Indian  Christians 
were  murdered  on  the  ground  of  their  supposed 
sympathy  with  the  English.  On  the  capture  of  Delhi 
(May  11)  by  the  mutineers,  every  missionary  was  killed. 
Their  number  included  the  Eev.  A.  K.  Hubbard  and  two 
catechists,  Sandys  and  Koch,  of  the  S.P.G.,  the  English 
chaplain,  and  Mr.  J.  Mackay  of  the  Baptist  mission, 
also  an  Indian  Baptist  preacher,  Wilayat  Ali.  At  Cawn- 
pore  were  killed  the  Eev.  W.  H.  Haycock  and  the  Eev. 
H.  E.  Cockey  of  the  S.P.G.,  and  the  Eevs.  J.  E.  Freeman, 
D.  E.  Campbell,  A.  D.  Johnson,  and  E.  M.  M'MuUen  from 
the  American  Presbyterian  mission  at  Fatehgarh.  At 
Sialkot  the  Scotch  Presbyterian  missionary  and  his  family 


INDIA  93 

were  massacred.  Including  English  chaplains  and  their 
families,  about  36  connected  with  missionary  work  were 
murdered  and  15  leading  Indian  Christians.  Ghokal 
Parshad,  the  headmaster  of  the  American  Presbyterian 
mission  at  Farrukhabad,  on  being  offered  life  and  freedom 
for  himself  and  his  family  if  he  would  abjure  his  faith, 
replied,  "  What  is  my  life  that  I  should  deny  my  Saviour  ? 
I  have  never  done  that  since  the  day  I  first  believed  on 
Him,  and  I  never  will." 

Throughout  the  Mutiny  the  Indian  Christians  re- 
mained loyal,  and  they  assisted  materially  in  holding  the 
fort  at  Agra. 

The  Mutiny  helped  Englishmen  to  realize  the  obliga- 
tion which  rested  upon  them  to  spread  the  knowledge 
of  their  faith  throughout  India,  and  the  years  which 
immediately  followed  it  witnessed  a  great  expansion  of 
missionary  effort,  more  especially  in  the  north-west. 
This  development  of  missionary  work  was  greatly  aided 
by  the  whole-hearted  support  accorded  by  some  of  the 
officials  who  were  responsible  for  the  government 
of  the  north-west.  Amongst  these  were  Sir  John 
Lawrence  (Viceroy,  1864-69),  Sir  Eobert  Montgomery 
and  Sir  Donald  M'Leod,  Lieutenant-Governors  of  the 
Punjab;  Sir  Herbert  Edwardes,  General  Eeynell  Taylor, 
and  Sir  Bartle  Frere,  Governor  of  Bombay.  Without 
infringing  the  policy  of  religious  neutrality,  which  was 
enunciated  in  the  Queen's  proclamation  that  followed  the 
suppression  of  the  Mutiny,  they  made  no  secret  of  their 
personal  faith,  and  contributed  largely  out  of  their  private 
incomes  towards  the  establishment  of  new  mission  stations, 
especially  those  which  were  supported  and  controlled  by 
the  C.M.S.  Amongst  the  important  centres  occupied  in 
succession  by  this  society  in  the  Punjab  were  Amritsar 
(1852)  and  Peshawar  (1854),  Multan  (1856),  Lahore 
(1867),  Dera  Ismail  Khan  (1868),  and  Srinagar,  the 
capital  of  Kashmir  (1863).  In  Oudh  it  established  centres 
of  work  at  Lucknow  (1858)  and  Fyzabad  (1862). 

A  few  months  before  the  Mutiny,  the  first  representa- 


94  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

tive  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  North  America 
(A.M.E.C),  Dr.  Butler,  had  landed  in  India.  Immediately 
after  the  Mutiny  this  society  started  work  at  a  number  o^ 
centres  in  Oudh,  and  later  on  in  the  United  Provinces,  and 
it  soon  established  single  stations  in  almost  every  part  of 
India.  It  has  been  the  policy  of  this  society  to  spread 
its  operations  over  the  widest  possible  area,  rather  than 
to  establish  a  series  of  centres  in  any  one  province  or 
district.  During  the  first  ten  years  of  its  operations  in 
India,  it  devoted  its  attention  (except  in  the  United 
Provinces)  to  work  amongst  Europeans  and  Eurasians,  but 
later  on  it  developed  its  missionary  activities  in  all  the 
districts  in  which  it  was  represented.  Bishop  Thoburn 
and  his  sister,  Isabella  Thoburn,  exercised  a  large  influence 
upon  the  development  of  its  work. 

The  distribution  of  mission  workers. 

In  order  to  gain  some  idea  of  the  present  condition  of 
missionary  enterprise  in  India,  we  will  try  to  make  a  brief 
survey  of  the  field  from  south  to  north.  In  this  survey 
only  the  work  of  the  larger  societies  can  be  mentioned. 
The  total  number  of  the  societies  at  work  exceeds  a 
hundred.  The  distribution  of  the  workers  belonging  to 
the  E.G.  missions  will  be  referred  to  later  on. 

In  the  Tamil-speahing  country,  which  forms  the  eastern 
portion  of  South  India  to  the  south  of  Madras,  the  Anglican 
missions,  i.e.  the  C.M.S.  and  the  S.P.G.,  which  latter  took 
over  many  of  the  converts  belonging  to  the  old  Lutheran 
missions,  have  about  100,000  converts.  The  bishop 
resides  at  Palamcottah,  which  is  the  chief  centre  of  the 
C.M.S.  mission.  At  Nazareth,  which  is  the  most  important 
centre  of  the  S.P.G.  mission,  there  is  a  medical  and  an 
industrial  mission.  The  mission  workers  include  13 
European  and  80  Indian  clergy.  Amongst  the  mission- 
aries who  have  worked  in  these  missions  should  be  men- 
tioned Edward  Sargent  (C.M.S.)  and  Eobert  Caldwell 
(S.P.G.),  both  of  whom  afterwards  became  bishops.     Many 


INDIA  95 

thousands  of  Indian  Christians  belonging  to  the  Anglican 
missions  in  Tinnevelly  have  become  Eoman  Catholics  in 
order  to  avoid  having  to  abandon  their  caste  customs 
and  ceremonial.  In  the  district  of  Madura  the  American 
Board  and  the  Leipzig  Missionary  Society  are  represented. 

Travancore, 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  work  of  the  L.M.S. 
missionary,  Eingeltaube.  The  work  which  he  began  in 
South  Travancore  has  developed  till  the  number  of  con- 
verts is  now  over  80,000,  the  greater  part  of  whom  are 
ministered  to  by  Indian  teachers  and  pastors.  The  mission 
staff  includes  1 6  Europeans,  1 7  ordained  Indians,  and  over 
600  preachers  and  teachers. 

The  C.M.S.  began  work  amongst  the  Syrian  Christians 
who  were  independent  of  Eome  in  1816,  in  the  hope  of 
creating  a  revival  amongst  the  members  of  this  ancient 
Church.  During  the  first  twenty  years  encouraging  results 
were  attained  ;  but  when  this  work  was  brought  to  a  stand- 
still by  the  opposition  of  the  metropolitan,  the  C.M.S. 
began  to  develop  work  amongst  the  Hindus.  This  mission 
has  steadily  developed.  It  is  superintended  by  the 
Anglican  Bishop  of  Travancore,  but  is  largely  self- 
supporting.  Connected  with  the  Anglican  Church  in 
Travancore  there  are  12  European  and  40  Indian  clergy. 
The  bishop  lives  at  Kottayam,  where  the  C.M.S.  has  a 
college  which  is  affiliated  to  the  University  of  Madras. 
Part  of  the  C.M.S.  mission  is  in  the  State  of  Cochin,  where 
missionary  work  is  carried  on  amongst  the  Arayer,  a  hill 
tribe  which  had  not  become  Hindus.  The  chief  stations 
in  Cochin  are  Trichur  and  Kunnankulam. 

The  members  of  the  ancient  Syrian  Church  ^  under 
the  Jacobite  Patriarch  of  Antioch  number  225,190,  and 
those  of  the  Eeformed,  or  St.  Thomas  Syrian,  Church 
under  its  own  metropolitan  about  75,000.      Those  owing 

*  The  following  figures  include  the  members  of  the  Syrian  Church  in 
Cochin  and  in  other  parts  of  South  India. 


96  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

allegiance  to  the  Church  of  Eome  number,  according  to 
the  Syrian  or  the  Latin  rite,  413,142.  Those  under  the 
East  Syrian  Patriarch  (the  Catholicos  of  the  East)  number 
about  13,780.  These  Churches  are  supervised  by  11 
Indians,  1  Chaldean,  and  3  European  bishops  (see  p.  66  f). 

Madras  and  the  Telugu  country. 

In  the  districts  which  include  Trichinopoly  and 
Tanjore,  the  chief  agencies  at  work  are  the  S.P.G.,  the 
Leipzig  Mission,  and  the  Wesleyans.  The  Trichinopoly 
college  (S.P.G.)and  schools  attached  to  it  have  about  1600 
pupils.     The  college  is  affiliated  to  the  University  of  Madras. 

In  the  city  of  Madras  the  best-known  missionary 
institution  is  the  Christian  College  (1837),  belonging  to 
the  Scotch  U.F.G.M.,  of  which  Dr.  Miller  was  for  many 
years  Principal.  As  a  direct  missionary  agency  the  college 
has  attained  little  success,  but  it  has  helped  to  raise  the 
ideals  of  education  in  Madras  and  throughout  South  India. 
One  of  the  aims  of  the  college  is  "  to  influence  and  mould 
the  corporate  thought  of  Hinduism,"  and  to  be  a  con- 
stant witness  to  the  close  bond  that  exists  between  Chris- 
tian faith  and  modern  thought.  Those  who  have  been 
educated  at  the  college  and  who  now  hold  posts  of  re- 
sponsibility throughout  South  India  are  to  be  numbered 
by  thousands.  There  are  800  students  at  the  college, 
200  of  whom  live  in  hostels  and  800  in  the  school 
attached  to  the  college.  The  Anglican  diocese  of  Madras 
includes  the  whole  Presidency,  with  the  exception  of 
Tinnevelly  and  Madura,  and  the  bishop  also  superintends 
the  Anglican  clergy  in  the  native  states  of  Hyderabad, 
Mysore,  and  the  province  of  Coorg.  In  the  area  included  in 
the  diocese  there  are  38  European  and  110  Indian  clergy. 

To  the  west  of  Madras  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church  of 
America  has  a  mission,  including  about  30  stations  and 
about  10,000  Christians.  Eight  sons  and  two  grandsons 
of  the  founder  of  this  mission,  Dr.  Scudder,  who  died  in 
1855,  have  worked  in  its  service. 


INDIA  97 

The  principal  societies  which  are  at  work  in  the 
Telugu  districts  to  the  north  of  Madura  are  the  C.M.S., 
the  S.P.G.,  the  L.M.S.,  and  the  American  Baptists 
(A.B.M.U.).  In  these  districts  there  has  been  within 
recent  years  a  series  of  mass  movements  towards 
Christianity.  If  these  should  continue,  as  seems  likely 
to  be  the  case,  there  is  every  prospect  that  within  the 
lifetime  of  this  generation  the  greater  part  of  the 
20,000,000  people  speaking  the  Telugu  language  who 
inhabit  these  districts  will  have  become  Christians. 
Up  to  the  present  the  movements  have  been  almost 
entirely  confined  to  what  is  called  the  outcaste  population, 
but  applications  for  Christian  instruction  have  recently 
been  received  from  communities  belonging  to  the  Sudra 
class.  The  conversion  of  any  large  number  of  Sudras 
would  pave  the  way  to  the  acceptance  of  the  Christian 
faith  by  the  caste  population  throughout  the  whole  of  India. 

The  L.M.S.  began  work  in  the  Telugu  country  in 
1805,  in  which  year  they  sent  two  missionaries  to  Vizaga- 
patam,  but  it  was  not  till  1835  that  their  first  converts 
were  made.  They  opened  a  station  at  Cuddapah  in  1822. 
By  1870  they  had  23  stations,  which  five  years  later  had 
increased  to  80.  After  the  famine  of  1877  they,  like  the 
other  societies  working  in  this  district,  were  wholly  unable 
to  cope  with  the  applications  which  were  received  for 
Christian  teachers.  Their  converts  and  adherents,  which 
include  a  considerable  number  of  Sudras,  number  about 
25,000.  The  society  has  an  important  medical  mission 
at  Jammalamadugu. 

The  American  Baptists  began  work  in  1835.  One  of 
their  first  missionaries,  Sewett,  who  was  invalided  home 
after  twelve  years  of  apparently  unsuccessful  work,  when 
informed  by  his  society  that  they  wished  to  abandon  this 
mission,  said,  "  I  know  not  what  you  will  do,  but  for  myself, 
if  the  Lord  gives  me  my  health,  I  will  go  back  to  live,  and 
if  need  be  to  die,  among  the  Telugu."  "  Then,"  was  the 
answer,  "  we  must  surely  send  a  man  to  give  you  a 
Christian  burial."  In  1869,  at  a  new  centre  which  had 
7 


98  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

been  opened  at  Ongole,  the  number  of  converts  began  rapidly 
to  increase,  and  by  1879  they  numbered  over  10,000. 
The  number  at  the  present  time  exceeds  60,000.  The 
mission  supports  five  hospitals,  three  high  schools  (at  Ongole, 
Nellore,  and  Kurnool),  and  a  training  school  for  teachers. 

The  territory  occupied  by  the  C.M.S.  mission  lies 
between  the  rivers  Krishna  and  Godavery,  and  stretches 
from  the  coast  about  100  miles  inland.  Work  was 
commenced  in  1841,  when  E.  T.  Noble  and  H.  W.  Fox 
were  sent  to  Masulipatam.  From  the  high  caste  school 
which  Noble  started  a  number  of  Brahmin  converts  were 
obtained,  especially  during  its  early  years.  On  the  staff 
of  the  college  there  were  in  1911  four  Brahmin  converts 
and  five  sons  of  Brahmin  converts.  A  mission  at  Nellore 
was  opened  in  1854  and  at  Bezwada  in  1858.  In  1859, 
after  eighteen  years'  work,  the  converts  connected  with  the 
mission  numbered  about  200.  In  this  year  a  remarkable 
man  named  Pagolu  Venkayya  was  converted,  and  with  his 
conversion  the  whole  aspect  of  the  mission  changed.  He 
belonged  to  the  Mala  caste,  and  had  been  the  leader  of  a 
band  of  violent  men.  At  the  age  of  forty-seven,  having 
been  told  by  a  companion  that  a  Christian  missionary  had 
declared  that  idols  were  incapable  of  helping  their  wor- 
shippers, he  then  and  there  determined  to  renounce  the 
worship  of  idols.  His  friend  also  told  him  that  the  mis- 
sionary had  spoken  of  one  only  God.  From  that  time  he 
began  to  use  these  words  as  a  form  of  prayer :  "  0  Great 
God,  who  art  Thou  ?  Where  art  Thou  ?  Show  Thyself  to 
me."  Later  on  he  came  across  a  Christian  tract  which 
referred  to  God  as  the  Saviour  of  the  world.  Thenceforth 
he  prayed,  "  0  great  God,  the  Saviour,  show  Thyself  to 
me."  For  three  years  he  continued  to  pray.  In  1859, 
whilst  attending  a  Hindu  bathing  festival  at  Bezwada,  he 
met  a  Christian  missionary,  and  having  heard  and  eagerly 
accepted  the  Christian  faith,  he  became  a  preacher  of 
Christianity  amongst  his  fellow-countrymen.  Conversions 
soon  followed,  and  when  Venkayya  died  in  1891  the 
converts    connected   with    the    C.M.S.    mission,    who    had 


INDIA  99 

numbered  200  at  the  time  of  his  baptism,  had  increased  to 
10,000.  At  the  present  time  they  number  over  32,000. 
There  are  28  Indian  clergy  connected  with  this  mission. 
Hopeful  work  is  also  being  carried  on  amongst  the  members 
of  the  Sudra  caste. 

The  territory  occupied  by  the  S.P.G.  lies  to  the  west 
of  the  C.M.S.  mission,  and  comprises  the  collectorates  of 
Cuddapah  and  Kurnool.  In  1842  several  of  the  L.M.S. 
missionaries,  amongst  whom  was  Dr.  Caldwell,  afterwards 
Bishop  of  Tinnevelly,  became  members  of  the  Anglican 
Church.  In  1854,  in  response  to  repeated  requests,  the 
S.P.G.  undertook  to  support  the  Anglican  mission  at 
Cuddapah,  which  had  been  carried  on  by  the  Eev.  V. 
Davies  and  by  the  Eev.  J.  Clay,  who  had  been  previously 
supported  by  the  Additional  Clergy  Society.  In  1855 
the  centre  of  this  mission  was  moved  to  Mutyalapad.  By 
1859  the  mission  included  13  congregations,  619  baptized 
Christians,  and  527  persons  under  instruction  for  baptism. 
A  station  which  was  opened  at  Kalasapad  in  1861  soon 
became  the  centre  of  a  large  number  of  other  stations. 

The  S.P.G.  Telugu  Mission  has  from  the  start  been 
greatly  undermanned,  with  the  result  that  its  representatives 
have  had  to  refuse  a  long  succession  of  pressing  requests 
from  villages  which  asked,  but  asked  in  vain,  to  receive 
Christian  instruction.  Despite  the  fact  that  there  had 
never  been  half  a  dozen  European  missionaries  in  the  field, 
by  1879  the  number  of  congregations  had  increased  to  76, 
and  the  baptized  Christians  to  2377.  Ten  years  later 
they  had  increased  to  115  congregations  and  5562 
baptized  Christians.  In  1913  the  number  of  congrega- 
tions was  230,  and  of  baptized  Christians  13,541.  The  im- 
portant factor  in  this  mission  has  been  the  300  or  more 
Christian  teachers,  most  of  whom  have  been  trained  at 
Nandyal,  and  who  in  most  cases  have  had  to  act  not 
only  as  teachers  of  village  schools  but  as  catechists  or 
preachers.  The  general  rule,  in  the  case  of  the  S.P.G.  and 
C.M.S.  missions,  has  been  that  when  an  application  for 
Christian  instruction    has  been    received    from    a    Hindu 


100  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

village,  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  have  been  asked  to 
provide  evidence  of  their  sincerity  by  building  a  school 
and  a  house  for  a  teacher,  and  by  guaranteeing  to  supply 
him  with  food.  Where  these  conditions  have  been  ful- 
filled, and  it  has  proved  possible  to  supply  a  teacher,  the 
teacher  has  taught  the  children  of  the  village,  and  given 
daily  religious  instruction,  and  conducted  daily  worship  for 
the  inhabitants  of  the  village  for  perhaps  two  years.  The 
village  has,  meanwhile,  been  periodically  visited  by  an 
Indian  catechist,  and  at  rarer  intervals  by  a  European 
missionary.  After  three,  or  in  some  cases  four  or  five, 
years'  continuous  instruction,  a  third,  or  perhaps  half  of 
those  who  have  become  candidates  for  baptism,  are  baptized. 
A  more  or  less  similar  course  of  procedure  has  been 
followed  by  the  other  missionary  societies  represented  in 
the  Telugu  country.  Experience  has  shown  that  a  long 
course  of  instruction  and  period  of  probation  is  necessary 
if  due  precautions  are  to  be  taken  to  guard  against  moral 
relapses.  In  1913  the  Bishop  of  Dornakal  ordained  16 
Telugu  Christians,  10  of  whom  belonged  to  the  S.P.G.  and 
6  to  the  C.M.S.  mission.  In  addition  to  the  large 
number  of  day  schools  connected  with  its  mission,  the 
S.P.G.  has  5  boarding  schools,  one  at  each  of  its  principal 
centres  of  work.  A  beginning  has  been  made  of  work 
amongst  women,  but  there  is  urgent  need  of  further 
development. 

In  the  district  which  comprises  the  estuary  of  the 
rivers  Krishna  and  Godavery  the  Canadian  Baptists  and 
the  American  Lutherans  have  missions  which  have 
achieved  considerable  success. 

Before  we  leave  the  Telugu-speaking  country,  refer- 
ence should  be  made  to  a  small  but  specially  interesting 
mission  which  was  founded  and  is  maintained  entirely  by 
Indian  Christians.  At  a  meeting  of  Indian  Christians 
connected  with  the  Anglican  Church  which  was  held  at 
Palamcottah  in  Tinnevelly  in  1903,  it  was  resolved  to 
form  the  Indian  Missionary  Society  of  Tinnevelly.  In 
1904  this  society  sent  two    Indian  Christians  to  open  a 


INDIA  101 

mission  at  Dornakal,  600  miles  from  Palamcottah,  between 
Bezwada  and  Hyderabad,  in  Hyderabad  State.  In  1906 
the  staff  had  grown  to  3,  in  addition  to  4  local  workers. 
In  that  year  the  Bishop  of  Madras  baptized  23  converts 
who  had  been  won  by  this  mission.  The  work,  which  is 
rapidly  spreading,  is  carried  on  in  over  thirty  villages. 
In  1912  the  Eev.  Vedanayakam  Azariah  was  consecrated 
as  Bishop  of  Dornakal  and  the  surrounding  district,  and  as 
an  assistant  bishop  to  the  Bishop  of  Madras. 

The  fact  that  this  mission  is  entirely  self-supporting, 
and  that  it  has  as  its  head  the  first  Indian  bishop  in 
communion  with  the  Anglican  Church,  will  appeal  to  all 
who  desire  to  see  Indian  churches  self-supporting  and 
governed  by  men  of  their  own  race. 

Farther  north,  in  the  Hydemhad  State,  the  American 
Episcopal  Methodists,  the  American  Baptists,  and  the 
English  Wesleyans  have  a  considerable  number  of  mission 
stations. 

Malabar. 

In  Malahar,  which  lies  to  the  north  of  Travancore  and 
Cochin  on  the  west  coast,  several  societies  are  represented 
by  one  or  two  mission  stations.  The  Basel  Mission 
Society  has  a  series  of  stations  reaching  from  here  north- 
wards to  the  South  Mahratta  country  in  the  Bombay 
Presidency.  A  chief  characteristic  of  this  mission  is  its 
development  of  industrial  training,  especially  of  weaving, 
brick-making,  and  carpentry.  These  industries  were 
started  in  order  to  give  employment  to  those  who  had 
been  left  orphans  by  famine,  and  Indian  Christians  who 
had  been  deprived  of  any  means  of  livelihood  by  their 
conversion  to  Christianity.  These  are  carried  on  by  an 
industrial  committee  in  Basel,  which  is  not  connected 
financially  with  the  Basel  Missionary  Society. 

From  a  commercial  standpoint  this  mission  has  been 
a  great  success : 

"There  are  dangers  in  such  work,  chiefly  lest  the 
mingling   of   business   and    evangelism    shall   hamper   the 


102  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

spiritual  influence  of  the  mission,  and  lest  the  tendency 
shall  be  to  induce  individuals  to  profess  Christianity  for 
the  sake  of  securing  a  lucrative  position.  Even  those  who 
for  these  reasons  believe  that  only  necessity  will  justify  the 
starting  of  mission  industries,  have  to  admit,  however, 
that  this  Basel  work  has  made  a  real  contribution  to 
economic  progress  and  to  the  dignifying  of  labour  as  worthy 
of  a  Christian."  ^ 

Mysore, 

In  the  native  state  of  Mysore  work  is  carried  on  by  the 
L.M.S.  from  Bellary  as  a  centre.  The  English  Wesleyans 
have  also  been  at  work  since  1838.  The  A.M.E.  Church 
has  mission  stations  at  Bangalore  and  Kolar.  The  L.M.S, 
has  an  extensive  mission  of  which  Bangalore  is  the  centre. 
This  is  also  the  site  of  an  important  United  Missionary 
College. 

From  the  missionary  standpoint,  the  educational  policy 
which  has  been  adopted  by  the  native  Hindu  Government 
of  Mysore  is  of  special  interest,  as  it  may  perhaps  forecast 
what  will  be  eventually  adopted  in  other  parts  of  India. 

The  Times  correspondent  in  Mysore,  writing  on 
October  3,  1908,  said: 

"  The  tendency  of  the  present  system  is  purely  secular 
in  character  and  has  not  been  satisfactory.  For  various 
reasons  the  homes  of  the  pupils  have  ceased  to  impart 
religious  education,  and  the  influence  of  religious  teachers 
and  places  of  worship  has  almost  disappeared.  Irreverence 
and  disrespect  for  authority  have  been  on  the  increase ; 
modesty,  self-restraint,  and  good  sense  have  been  largely 
at  a  discount,  while  presumption,  vanity,  and  unrestrained 
aggressiveness  appear  to  be  increasing.  In  the  circum- 
stances, the  Maharajah's  Government  has  decided  that  the 
readiest  way  of  remedying  this  state  of  affairs  is  by  impart- 
ing religious  and  moral  instruction  as  a  systematic  part  of 
education." 

In  view  of  the  widespread  interest  which  was  aroused 
by  the  regulations  issued  by  the  Mysore  Government  and 
the  possibility  that  they  may  create  a  precedent  in  other 

^  Sociological  Progress  in  Mission  Lands,  by  E.  W.  Capen,  p.  66  f. 


INDIA  103 

parts  of  India,  it  will  be  well  to  quote  the  actual  wording 
of  the  regulations : 

"  The  time  to  be  given  to  religious  and  moral  instruction 
will  be  limited  to  five  periods  a  week,  the  first  thirty  minutes 
after  roll-call  being  devoted  thereto.  There  will  be  a 
moral  discourse  on  Mondays,  Wednesdays,  and  Fridays, 
and  religious  instruction  on  Tuesdays  and  Thursdays.  The 
moral  discourse  will  be  common  to  pupils  of  all  persuasions, 
and  be  based  on  a  text  taken  from  some  religious,  moral, 
historical,  or  literary  book.  In  addition,  there  will  be 
specific  religious  teaching  from  books  like  the  Sanatana 
Dharma  Advanced  Text- Book,  the  Koran  and  approved 
commentaries  and  essays  on  the  Mohammedan  religion,  and 
the  Bible.  The  question  of  extending  the  scheme  to  aided 
schools  not  under  Government  management  is  reserved  for 
future  consideration. 

"As  Mysore  is  a  Hindu  State  and  the  bulk  of  the 
population  is  Hindu,  provision  for  imparting  teaching  in  the 
Hindu  religion  will  be  made  in  all  Government  institutions 
other  than  those  intended  purely  for  the  education  of  par- 
ticular classes  of  non-Hindus — as,  for  instance,  Hindustani 
schools.  The  classes  will  be  open  for  Hindus  of  all  de- 
nominations, but  attendance  will  be  optional  in  the  case  of 
other  pupils.  It  will  at  the  same  time  be  laid  down  for 
the  present  that,  when  in  any  Government  institution  the 
number  of  Mohammedan  or  Christian  pupils  is  not  less 
than  twenty,  arrangements  should  be  made,  as  far  as  may 
be  possible,  for  imparting  instruction  to  them  in  their 
respective  religions.  If,  however,  any  private  persons  or 
bodies  interested  in  either  of  these  religions  wish  to  make 
special  arrangements  at  their  own  cost  for  teaching  their 
respective  religions  in  Government  institutions,  where  the 
number  of  pupils  of  such  religions  is  below  twenty,  every 
facility  should  be  given  for  this  being  done." 

In  the  Native  States  of  Mysore,  Baroda,  and  Travan- 
core,  primary  education  is  now  compulsory. 

Bombay  Disti^ict. 

In  the  Mahrathi'SpeaJcing  country  which  lies  to  the  north 
of  the  Kanara  country  the  societies  represented  by  the 
largest  number  of  Christians  are  the  American  Board,  the 


104  HISTORY   OP   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

S.P.G.,  and  the  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland.  In 
Ahmadnagar  and  the  neighbouring  districts  the  S.P.G.  has 
several  hundreds  of  village  schools  and  a  large  amount  of 
work  amongst  women.  There  are  also  signs  of  special 
interest  which  may  develop  into  a  mass  movement  amongst 
some  of  the  Sudra  villages.  In  Poona  the  C.M.S.  is 
represented,  and  there  is  also  a  strong  mission  which  has 
been  worked  by  the  Cowley  Fathers  since  1870.  Closely 
associated  with  this  mission,  which  also  maintains  work  in 
Bombay,  are  the  Wantage  and  All  Saints'  sisterhoods, 
which  carry  on  work  amongst  Indian  women.  Khedgaon, 
near  Poona,  is  also  the  centre  of  the  remarkable  work 
amongst  high  caste  Indian  orphans  which  has  been  carried 
on  by  Pandita  Eamabai  since  1899. 

Industrial  work  is  being  carried  on  by  a  large  number 
of  missionary  societies  and  by  several  independent  in- 
dustrial associations,  e.g.  the  Scottish  Mission  Industries, 
which  works  in  connection  with  the  U.F.C.  of  Scotland 
at  Ajmer  and  Poona,  and  the  Industrial  Mission  Aid 
Society,  which  has  a  large  carpet-weaving  establishment  at 
Ahmadnagar  in  connection  with  the  AB.C.F.M. 

In  the  city  of  Bombay  a  number  of  missionary  societies 
—including  the  AB.C.F.M.,  the  C.M.S.,  the  S.P.G.,  the 
U.F.C.S.,  and  the  AM.E.C. — are  at  work,  but  the  visible 
results  have  been  small.  The  Wilson  College  connected 
with  the  U.F.C.S.  is  doing  good  work. 


In  Gujerat  the  Irish  Presbyterians  have  been  work- 
ing since  1841.  In  the  province  of  Sindh,  where  the 
majority  of  the  population  is  Mohammedan,  the  C.M.S.  and 
American  Episcopal  Methodists  have  a  few  stations. 

The  A.M.E.  Church  has  resident  missionaries  at  Ajmer 
and  Phalera. 

The  Punjab. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  starting  of  missionary 
work  in  the  Punjab  (see  pp.  91,  93).     Of  the  population  of 


INDIA  105 

the  Punjab  10,955,721,  i.e.  rather  more  than  half,  are 
Moslems.  The  Sikhs  in  the  Punjab  number  2,093,804; 
in  the  whole  of  India  they  number  3,014,466. 

Eeference  has  been  made  to  the  rapid  development  of 
missionary  work  in  the  Punjab  by  the  C.M.S.  which 
followed  the  Mutiny,  and  to  the  active  support  given  to 
this  work  by  leading  Government  officials.  It  was  alleged 
at  the  time,  and  the  statement  has  frequently  been  made 
since,  that  for  Government  officials  to  display  sympathy 
with  Christian  missions  was  to  render  the  task  of  govern- 
ing Hindus  and  Moslems  more  difficult  than  it  would 
otherwise  be.  This  suggestion  has  been  refuted  again  and 
again  by  the  history  of  the  missions  which  have  been 
estabhshed  in  the  North-West  Provinces.  Dr.  Eichter, 
quoting  one  of  many  instances,  writes : 

"  No  town  was  so  notorious  for  its  fanaticism  as  Pesha- 
war, near  the  Khyber  Pass.  An  English  Commissioner  had 
declared  that  so  long  as  he  had  anything  to  say  in  the 
matter,  no  missionary  should  cross  the  Indus.  A  short 
time  afterwards  this  individual  was  stabbed  by  an  Afghan 
on  the  veranda  of  his  house.  His  successor.  Sir  Herbert 
Edwardes  (in  1853),  began  his  official  activity  in  the  very 
house,  the  veranda  pillars  of  which  were  still  splashed  with 
the  dead  man's  blood,  by  founding  an  evangelical  mission  for 
the  town,  and  he  established  peace  and  quiet  in  the  place."  ^ 

The  chief  centres  of  the  C.M.S.  work  in  the  Punjab 
are  Lahore,  Amritsar,  and  Multan.  At  Clarkabad,  and  by 
other  missions  at  other  centres,  attempts  have  been  made 
to  establish  villages  to  be  inhabited  by  Christian  converts, 
but  great  difficulties  have  been  experienced  in  regard  to 
their  organization  and  control.  On  one  occasion  200 
nominal  Christians,  who  imagined  that  they  had  a  grievance, 
suddenly  announced  their  conversion  to  Islam.  Successful 
attempts  have  been  made  by  the  C.M.S.  to  create  a 
series  of  representative  church  councils  with  a  view  to 
encourage  self-government  and  self-support  amongst  the 
Christian  converts. 

*  History  of  Indian  Missions,  p.  210  f. 


106  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Lahore  is  also  an  important  centre  of  the  American 
Presbyterian  Mission,  and  its  college,  the  Forman  College, 
which  has  over  500  students,  is  one  of  the  most  important 
colleges  in  North  India.  The  A.M.E.C.  has  mission 
stations  in  several  parts  of  the  Punjab,  but  the  greater 
portion  of  its  work  is  in  the  Patiala  state,  and  specially 
in  Patiala  city. 

During  the  last  few  years  the  Central  Punjab  has  been 
the  scene  of  several  movements  towards  Christianity 
similar  to  the  "  mass  movements  "  that  have  taken  place 
in  South  India.  These  have  occurred  in  the  American 
United  Presbyterian  missions  and  in  the  C.M.S.  missions. 
There  are  over  60,000  Christians  connected  with  the 
former. 

The  great  increase  in  the  number  of  Christians  in  the 
Punjab  may  be  seen  from  the  fact  that  whereas  thirty 
years  ago  their  number  was  about  4000,  in  1901  they 
had  increased  to  37,000  and  in  1911  to  163,000.  In 
the  C.M.S.  missions  in  the  Chenab  colony  there  were  in 
1913  about  10,000  Christians,  and  the  number  is  rapidly 
increasing.  Both  the  C.M.S.  and  the  A.U.P.M.  are  very 
inadequately  staffed  in  view  of  the  large  number  of 
Indians,  mostly  Chuhras,  who  are  desirous  of  receiving 
instruction.  The  Bishop  of  Madras,  who  has  had  ex- 
perience of  the  "  mass  movements  "  in  the  Telugu  country, 
after  visiting  (in  1913)  the  missions  in  the  Punjab 
wrote : 

"  One  result  of  the  scarcity  of  workers  in  the  Punjab  is 
that  their  whole  system  of  education  is  far  behind  ours  .  .  . 
but  the  fact  that  they  have  such  an  inadequate  organization 
and  such  a  great  dearth  of  workers  has  obliged  them  to 
stimulate  the  Christians  to  take  a  larger  share  in  the 
management  of  their  own  affairs  than  is  the  case  in  the 
South.  Many  congregations  of  the  United  Presbyterian 
Mission  —  the  strongest  and  in  many  ways  the  best 
organized  mission  among  the  outcastes  of  the  Punjab — are 
self-supporting  and  self-governing.  One  feature  of  the 
work  in  the  Punjab  which  impressed  me  very  much  was 
their  system  of  agricultural  colonies  and  settlements.     As 


INDIA  107 

I  passed  through  the  Chenab  colony  I  visited  five  of  these, 
each  with  a  population  of  1000  to  1500  Christians.  .  .  . 
There  are  two  classes  of  Christian  villages  and  agricultural 
settlements  in  the  Punjab.  In  one  class  the  mission  holds 
the  land  as  the  property  of  the  Mission,  and  the  Indian 
Christians  are  the  tenants  of  the  Mission.  In  the  other 
class  of  Christian  villages  the  people  own  their  own  land 
and  are  independent.  It  is  an  interesting  fact  that  the 
first  class  of  villages  are  nearly  all  a  failure,  and  the  other 
class,  where  the  people  are  independent,  are  so  far  a 
success." 

The  total  number  of  Christians  in  the  Punjab  at  the  end 
of  1912  was  reckoned  at  167,413.  Their  rapid  increase 
in  number  has  been  in  part  due  to  the  policy  adopted 
by  certain  missionary  societies  of  baptizing  those  who 
desired  to  receive  baptism  without  demanding  any  period 
of  probation  or  any  intelligent  knowledge  of  the  Christian 
faith.  Most  of  the  missionary  societies  which  are  at 
work  in  the  Telugu  country,  where  mass  movements  on 
a  large  scale  have  taken  place,  have  found  by  experience 
that  it  is  necessary  to  keep  groups  of  inquirers  under 
instruction  for  three  or  even  four  years  before  admittiug 
them  to  Christian  baptism.  A  contrary  policy  has  been 
adopted  in  the  Punjab  by  the  American  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church,  the  American  Presbyterian  missions,  and  the 
Salvation  Army,  which  are  working  among  the  Chuhras, 
who  occupy  a  position  similar  to  that  of  the  Lai  Begis  in 
the  United  Provinces,  at  the  very  bottom  of  the  social 
scale. 

Professor  Griswold  of  the  Forman  (Presbyterian) 
College  in  Lahore,  in  defending  the  policy  of  these 
missions,  writes : 

"The  conditions  laid  down  for  baptism  are  not  the 
same  in  all  the  missions.  Earnestness  of  purpose  is 
required  by  all.  Sometimes  considerable  numbers  are 
baptized  with  no  other  qualification  than  an  apparently 
sincere  desire  to  become  Christians.  But  usually  something 
is  given  in  the  way  of  instruction,  e.g.  at  least  the  name  of 
the  Saviour,  and  the  fact  that  He  gave  His  life  for  sinners 


108  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

and  that  salvation  is  only  through  Him,  and  frequently  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  Ten  Commandments,  and  Apostles'  Creed, 
either  the  whole  or  in  part."  ^ 

Eeplying  to  the  objection  that  as  a  result  of  this 
policy  the  Christian  Church  will  be  crowded  with  those 
who  are  practically  heathen,  he  urges  that  though  this 
may  be  true  as  long  as  the  adult  members  are  concerned, 
there  is  hope  that  "  their  children  may  become  very  much 
better  than  their  parents,  and  really  enter  the  promised 
land  of  spiritual  renovation."  The  same  experiment  has 
been  made  and  the  same  argument  has  been  urged  in 
other  parts  of  the  mission  field  and  in  different  periods 
of  Christian  history;  but  few  who  have  made  a  careful 
study  of  Christian  missions  from  the  earliest  times  down 
to  the  present  day  would  venture  to  say  that  in  any 
single  case  have  the  final  results  justified  the  adoption 
of  the  policy  of  "  speedy  baptism "  for  which  Professor 
Griswold  pleads. 

Amongst  the  C.M.S.  stations  on  the  North-West 
Frontier  are  Srinagar  in  Kashmir,  Peshawar,  Bannu, 
Dera  Ismail  Khan,  and  Dera  Ghasi  Khan.  At  Srinagar, 
where  the  work  was  started  by  Dr.  Elmslie  (see  p. 
32),  there  is  a  large  mission  hospital  under  Drs.  A. 
and  E.  Neve,  and  a  boys*  school  under  the  Eev.  C.  Tyndale 
Biscoe.  This  school,  which  is  chiefly  attended  by  high 
caste  Hindus  and  Moslems,  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
in  India.  By  his  personal  influence  and  example  the 
Principal  has  inspired  his  pupils  with  the  desire  to  display 
many  Christian  virtues  which  are  but  seldom  practised 
by  those  who  are  nominally  Christians.  The  visitor  to 
this  school  may  see  high  caste  boys  engaged  in  rowing 
on  the  lake  low  caste  women  and  other  patients  who  are 
convalescents  at  the  Srinagar  Hospital,  and  performing, 
for  the  benefit  of  suffering  people  and  animals,  tasks 
which  the  ordinary  high  caste  Hindu  would  regard  as 
defiling.     Although    few    of    the    scholars    or    ex-scholars 

^  See  article  "The  Mass  Movement  in  the  Punjab,"  by  H.  D.  Griswold, 
The  East  and  The  West,  January  1915. 


INDIA  109 

have  as  yet  been  baptized,  the  Christian  influence  exerted 
by  this  school  has  been  felt  throughout  a  large  part  of 
North- West  India. 

Delhi,  the  capital  of  India,  is  an  imperial  enclave 
within  the  Punjab  province.  We  have  already  referred  to 
the  S.P.G.  and  Baptist  missions  which  were  established  there 
prior  to  the  Mutiny  (see  p.  92).  As  soon  as  the  S.P.G.  re- 
ceived the  news  of  the  massacre  of  its  missionaries,  it  issued 
an  appeal  for  fresh  workers,  which  met  with  an  immediate 
response.  Before  the  arrival  of  the  new  workers,  amongst 
whom  the  Eev.  T.  Skelton,  Fellow  of  Queens'  College, 
Cambridge,  and  the  Eev.  R  Winter  deserve  special 
mention,  Eam  Chunder  and  another  Indian  had  recom- 
menced the  mission  school,  which  by  the  end  of  1859 
contained  300  boys.  During  the  years  that  followed,  the 
educational  work  carried  on  by  this  mission  developed  to 
a  large  extent. 

In  1877  the  Cambridge  University  Mission  was 
formed,  its  object  being  to  co-operate  with  the  S.P.G.  in 
developing  its  educational  and  evangelistic  work  in  Delhi. 
The  Eev.  E.  Bickersteth,  who  afterwards  became  a  Bishop 
in  Japan,  was  the  first  Head.  The  next  Head  of  this 
mission  was  the  Eev.  G.  A.  Lefroy,  who  afterwards 
became  Bishop  of  Lahore  (1899),  and  subsequently 
Bishop  of  Calcutta  and  Metropolitan  of  India  (1913). 
St.  Stephen's  College,  which  is  affiliated  to  the  University 
of  Lahore  and  has  over  200  students,  has  an  Indian 
Principal,  Professor  Eudra,  who  is  assisted  by  a  staff  of 
English  University  graduates.  The  college,  which  is  now 
being  rebuilt  in  the  new  city  of  Delhi  on  a  site  granted 
by  the  Government  of  India,  has  recently  increased  its 
staff  of  professors  and  has  the  prospect  of  a  wide  sphere 
of  usefulness  in  the  future. 

The  S.P.G.  also  supports  a  large  mission  hospital  for 
women  and  educational,  industrial,  and  zenana  work.  The 
S.P.G.  and  Baptist  missions  work  in  complete  harmony 
and  have  been  able  to  co-operate  in  some  of  the  educational 
work  which  they  carry  on. 


110  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

On  the  Indian  border  of  Tibet  to  the  north  of  the 
Punjab  the  Moravians  have  carried  on  a  mission  for  over 
fifty  years,  and  have  translated  the  Bible  into  the  Tibetan 
language. 

Central  Provinces  and  Rajputana, 

The  C.M.S.  has  mission  stations  at  Jubbulpore  and  in 
the  country  of  the  Gonds  in  the  Central  Provinces,  and 
at  Bharatpur  and  in  the  Bhil  country  in  the  eastern  part 
of  Eajputana.  The  Scotch  Episcopal  Church  has  a  mission 
to  the  Gonds  at  Chanda.  The  C.E.Z.M.S.  has  also  work 
in  these  Provinces.  The  U.F.C.  of  Scotland  has  work  at 
Nagpur,  the  Swedish  Fatherland  Institution  at  Sagar,  and 
the  German  Evangelical  Synod  of  North  America  at 
Bisrampur.  The  A.M.E.C.,  the  Friends  Foreign  Missionary 
Association,  and  several  other  Bodies  have  also  a  number 
of  mission  stations  in  Eajputana.  The  A.M.E.C.  has 
resident  missionaries  at  Nagpur,  Jubbulpore,  Gondia, 
Raipur,  Khandwa,  and  Jagdalpur. 

United  Provinces. 

The  United  Provinces,  i.e.  Agra  and  Oudh,  include  the 
important  towns  of  Agra,  Cawnpore,  Lucknow,  Allahabad, 
and  Benares.  The  Anglican  Bishop  of  Lucknow,  in  whose 
diocese  these  provinces  lie,  resides  at  Allahabad. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  development  of 
missionary  work  in  these  provinces  up  to  the  time  of 
the  Mutiny,  and  to  the  missionaries  who  were  killed  in 
Cawnpore  on  the  outbreak  of  the  Mutiny.  After  the 
Mutiny  the  Government  handed  over  the  church  which 
had  been  built  for  the  use  of  Europeans,  and  which 
was  not  destroyed  by  the  mutineers,  to  the  S.P.G.,  which 
has  made  it  the  centre  of  its  work  in  Cawnpore.  It  is 
interesting  to  record  that  the  son  of  the  man  who  was 
the  direct  instigator  of  the  massacre  at  Cawnpore  even- 
tually became  a  catechist  in  the  S.P.G.  Mission.  In  1889 
George    and    Foss    Westcott    (who    are    now    Bishops    of 


INDIA  111 

Lucknow  and  Chota  Nagpur)  started  a  Brotherhood  in 
connection  with  the  S.P.G.  Mission  which  has  been  the 
means  of  developing  educational,  industrial,  and  evangelistic 
work  in  the  city  and  the  surrounding  country. 

The  college  which  the  Brotherhood  helped  to  establish 
at  Cawnpore  is  affiliated  to  the  Allahabad  University. 

Amongst  the  Indian  clergy  who  have  done  good  work 
in  connection  with  the  S.P.G.  Mission  should  be  mentioned 
Sita  Earn,  a  Brahman  convert,  who  died  in  1878. 

In  1899  St.  Catherine's  Mission  Hospital  for  Women 
was  opened.  One  of  its  doctors,  Alice  Marval,  and  four 
of  the  hospital  workers  died  as  a  result  of  nursing  plague 
patients  in  1904.  Offshoots  of  the  S.P.G.  Cawnpore 
Mission  have  been  established  at  Eoorkee  (1861)  and 
Banda  (1873). 

Other  missionary  societies  represented  in  Cawnpore  are 
the  A.M.E.C.,^  the  American  Presbyterian  Mission,  and  the 
Women's  Union  Missionary  Society  of  America.  The 
AM.E.C.  Mission  dates  from  1871.  Here  as  in  many 
other  places  in  India  its  representatives  work  not  only 
amongst  the  Indians  but  amongst  the  Europeans  and 
Eurasians. 

Agra. — St.  John's  College,  which  is  supported  by  the 
C.M.S.,  was  established  in  1853  and  is  now  affiliated  to 
the  University  of  Allahabad.  The  daily  attendance  at 
the  college  and  its  branch  schools  in  the  city  is  over 
1200.  The  Queen  Victoria  Girls'  High  School  (1904) 
has  about  100  Christian  scholars  and  exercises  a  large 
influence  amongst  the  Christian  community  throughout  the 
province. 

Other  missions  represented  in  Agra  are  the  A.M.E.C, 
the  English  Baptist  Missionary  Society,  and  the  Edinburgh 
Medical  Missionary  Society. 

The  C.M.S.  and  the  A.M.E.C.  began  their  work  in 
Lucknow  in  1858.  The  A.M.E.C.  supports  the  Eeid 
Christian    College   for     Boys    and    the    Isabella    Thoburn 

^  For  a  reference  to  the  rapid  development  of  the  work  of  the  American 
Methodist  Episcopal  Mission  in  the  United  Provinces,  see  pp.  124,  138. 


112  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

College  for  Girls.  It  also  supports  work  at  several  stations 
in  the  Sitapur  and  Philibhifc  districts. 

In  Allahabad  the  C.M.S.  began  work  in  1813,  when 
it  placed  there  Abdul  Masih,  who  was  the  first  Indian 
to  receive  Anglican  Orders.  The  American  Presbyterians 
have  an  important  college  which  is  affiliated  to  the 
Allahabad  University,  and  the  C.M.S.  has  a  hostel  for 
students  attending  the  University.  The  A.M.E.C.  and  the 
Z.B.M.  are  also  represented. 

In  Benares,  which  is  in  a  sense  the  religious  capital  of 
India,  work  was  begun  by  the  C.M.S.  in  1817,  by  the 
L.M.S.  in  1820,  by  the  Baptists  in  1827,  and  later  on  by 
the  Wesleyan  Missionary  Society  and  by  the  Zenana  Bible 
and  Medical  Mission.  This  latter  society  supports  a 
strong  medical  mission  and  hospital.  The  L.M.S.  and  the 
C.M.S.  have  large  high  and  elementary  schools. 

Chota  Nagpur, 

Work  amongst  the  aboriginal  tribes  in  Chota  Nagpur 
was  inaugurated  by  the  Kev.  J.  E.  Gossner,  a  German  who 
had  received  priest's  Orders  in  the  B.C.  Church,  and  having 
separated  from  its  Communion  prepared  and  sent  out 
evangelists  to  India.  Four  of  these,  who  were  sent  to 
India  in  1844,  were  instructed  to  start  work  in  some 
district  in  which  there  were  no  other  workers.  Their 
attention  was  directed  to  Kanchi  in  Chota  Nagpur  by 
coming  across  some  of  the  inhabitants  of  that  district  who 
were  working  as  coolies  in  the  streets  of  Calcutta  and 
whom  they  followed  to  their  homes.  After  they  had 
laboured  at  Eanchi  for  four  years,  four  men  came  to  them 
asking  that  they  might  be  allowed  to  see  Jesus,  and  when 
told  that  this  was  impossible,  they  went  away  disappointed, 
believing  that  the  missionaries  had  refused  their  request 
because  they  were  not  high  caste  people.  As  the  result, 
however,  of  watching  the  missionaries  at  their  devotions,  they 
became  the  first  converts  to  Christianity  in  that  district. 

By  1851  thirty-one  baptisms  had  taken  place,  and  by 


INDIA  113 

the  time  of  the  Mutiny  the  converts  had  increased  to 
900.  At  the  close  of  the  Mutiny  Gossner  proposed  to 
transfer  the  mission  and  his  funds  to  the  C.M.S.  This 
offer  was  refused,  though  the  C.M.S.  made  a  grant  of 
£1000  to  the  mission  in  1858.  On  the  death  of  Gossner 
in  this  year  a  committee  was  formed  in  Berlin  to  carry  on 
the  mission.  When  in  1868  this  committee  proposed  to 
alter  the  constitution  of  the  mission,  the  older  Lutheran 
missionaries  found  themselves  unable  to  accept  the  orders 
of  the  Home  Committee,  and  were  obliged  to  quit  the 
churches  and  mission  buildings  which  they  had  erected. 
At  this  time  the  number  of  Christian  Kols  was  about 
9000.  Application  was  made  by  the  missionaries  to 
Bishop  Milman  of  Calcutta  to  receive  them  and  their 
converts  into  the  Anglican  Church.  The  Bishop  for  a 
long  time  refused  to  take  action  and  did  his  utmost  to 
promote  a  reconciliation  between  the  older  Lutheran 
missionaries  and  the  Berlin  Committee.  When  it  at 
length  became  apparent  that  no  reconciliation  could  be 
effected,  he  applied  to  the  S.P.G.,  and  having  received  a 
promise  of  support  from  this  society,  he  formally  received 
7000  Kols  into  the  Anglican  Church  and  conferred 
Anglican  Orders  upon  their  three  pastors.  On  the  same 
occasion  he  ordained  an  Indian  catechist,  Daud  Singh. 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  point  out  that  for  one 
society  to  invite  converts  who  had  previously  been  attached 
to  another  society  to  join  its  mission  would  be  wholly  in- 
compatible with  the  principles  of  Christian  comity  and 
would  be  altogether  deplorable.  In  this  case,  however,  the 
Anglican  Bishop  had  refused  to  recommend  the  S.P.G.  to 
undertake  work  in  Chota  Nagpur  till  the  representatives 
of  the  Lutheran  Mission  had  declared  that  their  separation 
from  the  Berlin  Committee  was  irrevocable.  The  mission 
supported  by  the  Berlin  Committee  was  carried  on  with 
undiminished  enthusiasm  and  increasing  success.  Satis- 
factory relations,  moreover,  were  soon  established  with  the 
S.P.G. ,  and  the  two  missions  have  since  worked  harmoniously 
side  by  side. 
8 


114  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

In  1890  the  Eev.  S.  C.  Whitley  was  consecrated  as 
the  first  Bishop  of  Chota  Nagpur. 

Seventy  miles  to  the  north  of  Eanchi  a  Dublin 
University  Mission  was  established  at  Hazaribagh  in  1891. 
This  mission  maintains  a  college,  several  schools,  and  a 
hospital,  and  has  done  much  to  further  the  higher  educa- 
tion of  the  people  of  Chota  Nagpur.  It  has  a  number  of 
women  associates,  who  form  part  of  the  mission  staff. 

Missionaries  belonging  to  the  E.G.  Church  first  appeared 
in  Chota  Nagpur  in  1880,  when  the  Lutheran  and  ST.G. 
missions  had  already  attained  a  large  amount  of  success. 
In  order  to  win  the  confidence  of  the  people,  the  new 
missionaries  started  an  extensive  system  of  agricultural 
loans,  offering  to  those  whose  wages  did  not  exceed  2d.  or 
3d.  a  day  a  loan  of  two  or  three  rupees,  which  was  not  to 
be  repayable  as  long  as  the  borrowers  continued  to  be 
"  good  Catholics."  As  the  Lutheran  and  S.P.G.  missionaries 
did  not  consider  it  to  be  right  to  offer  similar  advantages, 
the  result  was  that  a  large  number  of  the  converts  who 
had  been  baptized  by  them  joined  the  Eoman  Church. 
This  method  of  conversion  was  not  adopted  on  the  initiative 
of  individual  missionaries,  but  was  definitely  sanctioned  by 
the  E.C.  Jesuit  authorities  on  the  ground  that  to  rely  upon 
religious  motives  would  be  to  forgo  the  possibility  of 
extending  their  work.  Thus  the  editor  of  the  Government 
Census  for  1911  writes :  "  A  well-known  E.C.  missionary 
in  Chota  Nagpur  writes  to  me  as  follows  concerning  the 
inducements  to  conversion  : — 

"*As  a  general  rule  religious  motives  are  out  of  the 
question.  They  want  protection  against  zamindars  (farmers) 
and  police  extortions,  and  assistance  in  the  endless  litigation 
forced  on  them  by  zamindars.  ,  .  .  Personally,  1  know  of 
some  cases  where  individuals  came  over  from  religious 
motives.     But  these  cases  are  rare.'  "  ^ 

The  Belgian  Jesuit  missionaries  in  Chota  Nagpur 
have    acted    from    the    highest    motives,   and    they    have 

^  Census  Beport,  vol.  i.  pt.  i.  p.  137. 


INDIA  115 

themeielves  lived  self-denying  and  laborious  lives,  but 
it  is  much  to  be  deplored  that  in  Chota  Nagpur,  as  in 
many  other  districts  in  India,  the  E.G.  missionaries  should 
have  thought  it  to  be  their  duty  to  proselytize  those  who 
were  already  Christians  rather  than  to  begin  new  work 
amongst  non-Christians. 

So  great  was  the  success  attained  by  the  Jesuit 
missionaries  in  the  districts  round  Eanchi  that  they  were 
able  to  baptize,  or  re-baptize,  10,000  converts  within  the 
course  of  a  few  years.  Their  best  work  has  been  the 
establishment  of  village  schools  where  a  large  number  of 
children  are  in  course  of  being  educated.  Moreover,  as 
their  work  has  extended  they  have  gathered  in  many  who 
had  not  been  touched  by  other  missions.  In  the  Jashpur 
native  state,  which  lies  to  the  west  of  Chota  Nagpur  in 
the  state  of  Berar,  they  had  in  1911  33,000  adherents, 
chiefly  aboriginal  Oraons,  nearly  all  of  whom  had  been 
won  since  1901.  A  considerable  number  were  won  from 
the  ranks  of  the  Lutheran  Christians,  who  number  about 
10.000. 

Bengal. 

The  Indian  Christian  community  in  Bengal  ^  numbered 
43,784  in  1911.  Of  the  total  number  of  Christians  in 
Bengal  35  per  cent,  are  Eoman  Catholics,  27  per  cent. 
Baptists,  and  22  per  cent.  Anglicans.  Nearly  two-fifths 
of  the  Eoman  Catholics  are  found  in  the  district  of  Dacca. 
The  Baptists  have  obtained  their  greatest  success  amongst 
the  Namasudras  of  Eastern  Bengal,  and  half  their  con- 
verts are  in  the  Dacca  division.  The  great  majority  of 
the  Indian  members  of  the  Anglican  Communion  are  found 
in  Nadia,  the  twenty-four  Parganas,  and  Calcutta.^ 

A  large  number  of  missionary  societies  are  represented 
in  Calcutta,  amongst  which    are    the  C.M.S.,   the   S.P.G., 

^  These  statistics  relate  to  "Bengal  proper."  In  Behar,  Orissa,  and 
Chota  Nagpur — which  were  also  included  in  the  Bengal  census — the  Indian 
Christians  numbered  19,893,  7110,  and  197,168  respectively. 

^  See  Census  Report,  1911,  vol.  i.  pt.  i.  p.  134, 


116  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

the  Oxford  University  Mission,  the  Scotch  Established 
and  the  U.F.  Churches,  and  the  Baptist  and  Wesleyan 
Missions. 

In  Calcutta  itself  (as  in  the  case  of  Bombay  and 
Madras),  the  progress  of  missionary  work  has  been  slow 
and  unsatisfactory  compared  with  the  progress  achieved  in 
some  other  parts  of  India.  This  is  partly  due  to  the  very 
unsatisfactory  moral  atmosphere  which  prevails  in  these 
cities,  and  partly  to  the  mixed  and  changing  character  of 
their  populations. 

The  work  of  the  Oxford  Mission  to  Calcutta  amongst 
students  attending  the  Calcutta  University  has  been 
carried  on  for  thirty-five  years  with  a  self-denying  de- 
votion which  has  never  been  excelled  in  the  history  of 
modern  missions,  but  the  visible  results  are  as  yet  in- 
significant. 

The  largest  missionary  college  in  Calcutta  is  that 
belonging  to  the  Church  of  Scotland  and  the  U.F.C., 
which  has  over  1000  students.  The  L.M.S.  and  the  S.P.G. 
have  also  colleges,  and  the  C.M.S.  has  a  college  and  two 
high  schools  for  boys,  and  a  boarding  school  for  girls. 

Throughout  the  greater  part  of  Bengal,  missionary 
work  is  being  carried  on,  but  a  large  proportion  of  the 
inhabitants  are  still  unreached.  The  Anglican,  Scottish, 
London,  Baptist,  and  Wesleyan  societies  are  all  repre- 
sented. At  Barisal,  east  of  Calcutta,  the  Oxford  Univer- 
sity Mission  and  the  English  Baptists  are  strongly 
represented.  The  C.M.S.  has  many  stations  in  the  Krish- 
nagar  or  Nadia  district  north  of  Calcutta.  In  this 
district  there  occurred  a  mass  movement  towards  Christi- 
anity about  sixty  years  ago,  but  the  results  were  not 
altogether  satisfactory. 

The  C.M.S.  began  work  at  Taljhari  in  Western  Bengal 
among  the  Santals,  one  of  the  aboriginal  races  which  have 
not  embraced  Hinduism,  in  1860,  and  soon  covered  the 
Santal  districts  with  a  network  of  mission  stations.  In 
1913  there  were  24  European  and  25  Indian  clergy,  and 
389  Christian  \aj  agents  connected  with  this  mission;  the 


INDIA  117 

total  number  of  Christians  being  about  6000.  The  Indian 
Home  Mission,  founded  by  two  Scandinavians  in  1867, 
has  also  a  considerable  amount  of  work  amongst  the 
Santals,  its  chief  station  being  Ebenezer. 

The  U.F.C.  of  Scotland  also  began  work  amongst  the 
Santals  in  1871,  and  has  several  mission  stations. 

The  Church  of  Scotland  has  excellent  work  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Darjeeling  and  Kalimpong  amongst  the 
hill  tribes  of  the  Lepcha,  Gurkha,  and  Bhutia. 

Assam, 

The  Assamese  people  have  for  the  most  part  become 
Hindus,  but  there  are  several  hill  tribes  (Garos,  Nagas, 
Khasis,  Lushais,  and  Kacharis)  which  are  still  pagan.  The 
largest  number  of  converts  have  been  won  by  the  Welsh 
Calvinistic  Methodists,  who  started  work  in  1841.  Their 
chief  work  lies  in  the  Khasi  and  Jaintia  hills,  their 
principal  station  being  Shillong.  The  mission  has  also 
branches  in  Cachar,  Sylhet,  and  the  Lushai  hills.  In  the 
latter  district  rapid  progress  has  been  attained.  The  heir 
to  the  throne  of  a  small  independent  kingdom  in  the 
Khasi  mountains  who  embraced  Christianity  when  offered 
the  choice  of  renouncing  his  new  faith  or  of  abandoning  his 
claim  to  the  throne,  chose  the  latter  alternative.  During 
the  decade  the  converts  connected  with  the  W.C.  Mission 
have  nearly  doubled.     They  numbered  31,000  in  1911. 

The  American  Baptists,  who  started  work  in  1836, 
number  over  21,000.  The  Christians  connected  with  this 
mission  are  chiefly  found  in  the  Brahmaputra  valley  and 
in  the  Garo  and  Naga  hills.  This  mission  has  also  some 
work  amongst  the  Assamese. 

Anglican  Mission  in  Assam, — In  1850,  Captain  Gordon, 
who  was  stationed  at  Tezpur,  began  a  mission  at  this  place, 
which  was  taken  over  by  the  S.P.G.  in  1862.  In  1851 
the  S.P.G.  started  work  at  Dibrugarh,  and  later  on  opened 
several  stations  amongst  the  Kachari  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Dibrugarh   and   Attabari.     In   this  district    there    are 


118  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

about  3000  converts.  Quite  recently  a  E.G.  mission  has 
been  started  amongst  the  people  to  whom  the  S.P.G.  is 
ministering. 

Apart  from  the  work  which  is  being  done  amongst  the 
hill  tribes  and  the  Assamese,  the  S.P.G.  and  the  German 
Lutherans  minister  to  the  needs  of  a  large  number  of 
Christian  Kols  and  Santals  (numbering  about  8000),  who 
have  come  as  immigrants  to  labour  on  the  tea  and  other 
plantations. 

The  recent  creation  of  a  diocese  of  Assam  will 
probably  lead  to  a  considerable  expansion  of  Anglican 
missions  in  this  province. 

The  total  Christian  population  of  Assam  (apart  from 
Europeans)  is  about  64,000  (1911). 

Indian  Census  Returns. 

Greater  facilities  exist  for  gaining  a  bird's-eye  view  of 
the  progress  of  missions  over  a  wide  area  and  during  a 
considerable  number  of  years  in  India  than  in  any  other 
non-Christian  country.  These  facilities  are  afforded  by  a 
careful  study  of  the  returns  issued  by  the  Indian  Census 
Commissioners  at  intervals  of  ten  years  since  1871. 
The  student  of  missions  is  warned  that  great  care  is  needed 
in  making  comparisons  supplied  for  the  different  decades,  as 
the  limits  of  the  Indian  Empire  have  undergone  several 
important  changes.  Moreover,  the  returns  do  not  include 
the  Portuguese  and  French  territories  in  India,  in  which  a 
large  proportion  of  the  Christians  attached  to  the  RC. 
Church  reside.  Many  of  the  tables,  moreover,  which  are 
contained  in  the  returns  include  European  and  Eurasian 
Christians.  It  is  obvious  that  the  number  of  these  must  in 
every  case  be  subtracted  before  any  trustworthy  estimate 
of  the  progress  of  Christian  missions  can  be  gained. 

During  the  decade  1901-11  the  population  of  India  as 
a  whole  increased  by  6 '4  per  cent.,  or,  if  we  include  the 
gain  due  to  the  addition  of  new  areas,  7'1.  The  Indian 
Christians   have   increased   during   the  same  period   from 


INDIA  119 

2,664,313  to  3,574,770— that  is,  34-2  per  cent.,  or  five 
times  as  fast  as  the  whole  population  (included  in  both  the 
returns)  has  increased. 

The  rate  of  increase  of  Indian  Christians  during  the 
last  four  decades  has  been  22  per  cent.,  33*9  per  cent., 
30 "8  per  cent.,  and  34*2  per  cent.  Eoughly  speaking,  it 
may  be  stated  that  the  Indian  Christians  in  the  Indian 
Empire  numbered  1  in  143  in  1891,  1  in  111  in  1901, 
and  1  in  86  in  1911. 

Those  interested  in  the  spread  of  Christianity  in 
India  have  sometimes  tried  to  forecast  the  future  and  to 
estimate  the  length  of  time  which  may  be  expected  to 
elapse  before  India  becomes  a  Christian  country.  Those 
who  regard  the  future  from  a  more  hopeful  standpoint 
are  influenced  by  a  consideration  of  the  mass  move- 
ments which  are  now  in  progress  and  by  the  anticipation 
that  the  caste  system  which  is  the  chief  obstacle  to  the 
spread  of  Christianity  will  probably  ere  long  disappear  as  by 
a  landslide.  The  fact  that  24,000  Moslems  in  the  Dutch 
East  Indies  have  become  Christians  within  recent  years 
forbids  them  to  despair  of  the  conversion  of  the  Indian 
Moslems,  when  they  come  to  be  surrounded  by  a  Christian 
population  of  the  same  race  and  speaking  the  same 
languages  as  themselves. 

On  the  other  hand,  those  who  take  a  less  hopeful  view 
point  to  the  comparatively  small  number  of  conversions 
which  are  taking  place  at  the  present  time  amongst  the 
high  caste  peoples  and  the  Mohammedans,  and  con- 
template the  possibility  that  the  present  conditions  may 
long  continue  to  operate.  It  is  obviously  unwise  to  rely 
upon  statistics  relating  to  progress  in  the  past  in  order  to 
prognosticate  what  the  future  has  in  store,  but  this  at 
least  may  be  said :  should  the  increase  which  has  been 
taking  place  during  the  last  30  years  be  maintained,  in 
50  years'  time  the  Christians  will  number  1  in  21  of  the 
population,  in  100  years  they  will  number  1  in  5,  and  in 
160  years  the  whole  population  of  India  will  be  Christian. 
If  the  relative  rate  at  which  the  Roman  and  non-Eoman 


120 


HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 


missions  are  expanding  be  also  maintained,  in  1 6  0  years  the 
Christians  in  India  connected  with  the  E.G.  Church  will 
form  about  1  in  30  of  the  whole  Christian  community. 

The  following  table  shows  the  number  of  Christians  of 
Indian  nationality  according  to  the  last  three  census 
returns : — 


Provinces. 

1891. 

1901. 

1911. 

Madras 

Travancore  and  Cochin 

Bengal  and  Assam    . 

Bombay     . 

United  Provinces     . 

Punjab      .        .        . 

Burma 

Mysore      .        .        . 

825,424 

713,403 

167,304 

127,575 

23,406 

19,639 

101,303 

27,981 

983,888 

892,054 

258,305 

171,214 

68,341 

37,695 

129,191 

39,585 

1,150,379 
1,149,495 
367,079 
191,973 
136,469 
163,220 
185,542 
46,554 

Total  for  all  India  ^  . 

2,036,590 

2,664,000 

3,574,770 

As  will  be  seen  from  the  above  table,  the  rate  of 
increase  has  varied  considerably  in  different  parts  of  India. 
The  most  striking  increase  has  been  in  the  Punjab,  where 
the  rate  has  been  333  per  cent.  This  has  been  due 
to  the  mass  movements  among  the  Chuhras,  which  have 
resulted  from  the  work  of  the  American  Presbyterian  and 
C.M.S.  missions.  More  than  half  the  Indian  Christians  in 
the  Punjab  are  connected  with  the  A.U.P.M.  (see  p.  106). 
The  Salvation  Army  converts  in  the  Punjab  have  increased 
during  the  decade  from  a  few  hundreds  to  18,000.  "A 
special  feature  of  the  activities  of  the  Salvation  Army  is 
the  attention  which  they  pay  to  the  criminal  tribes  and 
depressed  classes  generally.  In  several  provinces  they  have 
entered  into  special  arrangements  with  Government  for 
the  reclamation  of  tribes  whose  criminal  proclivities  it  has 
been  found  impossible  to  curb  by  means  of  police  surveil- 
lance.    They  endeavour  to  improve  the  moral  and  material 

1  These  totals  include  the  Christians  in  the  Provinces  as  given  above 
together  with  the  Christians  in  the  native  states. 


INDIA 


121 


condition  of  these  people  by  sympathetic  supervision  and 
by  teaching  them  various  industries  which  will  enable  them 
to  earn  an  honest  livelihood."  ^ 

In  the  Central  Provinces  and  Central  Provinces  States 
the  general  increase  of  the  population  has  been  18  per 
cent,  while  the  Christian  increase  has  been  162  per  cent. 

The  population  of  the  Madras  Presidency,  including 
the  Travancore  and  Cochin  States,  has  increased  by 
3  per  cent.,  whilst  the  Christians  have  increased  by  16  9 
per  cent.  In  the  case  of  Burma,  the  statistics  revealed 
by  the  Government  Census  are  much  more  encouraging 
than  missionaries  had  anticipated.  During  the  last  ten 
years  there  has  been  an  increase  of  56,000  Christians,  the 
ratio  of  increase  being  44  per  cent. 

The  following  table  shows  the  comparative  progress 
of  Eoman  and  Anglican  missions,  and  of  the  largest  of  the 
Protestant  denominations  during  the  decade  1901—11 : — 


Total  Number  of  Indian 

Number 

Christians. 

Actual 

Increase 

per  1000 
Indian 
Chris- 

Increase. 

Percent. 

In  1911. 

In  1901. 

tians. 

Roman      Catholics,     ex- 

cluding Romo-Syrians 

1,393,720 

1,122,508 

271,212 

24 

390 

Romo-Syrians 

413,134 

322,583 

90,551 

28 

116 

Anglicans 

332,807 

213,2731 

119,534 

56-2 

93 

Baptists  .... 

332,171 

216,915 

115,256 

53-1 

93 

SyrianChristians(  Jacobite, 

Reformed,  Chaldsean) . 

315,157 

248,737 

66,420 

26-7 

88 

Lutherans 

216,842 

153,768 

63,074 

41 

61 

Presbyterians  . 

164,069 

42,799 

121,270 

283-3  2 

46 

Methodists       . 

162,367 

68,4^9 

93,878 

137 

45 

Congregationalists  . 

134,240 

37,313 

96,927 

259-7  3 

38 

Salvationists   . 

52,199 

18,847 

33,352 

177 

15 

^  Omitting  the  92,644  unclassified  "Protestants"  which  were  added  to 
the  Anglican  totals  in  1901,  but  which  were  omitted  in  1911. 

2  The  greater  part  of  this  increase  has  been  in  the  Punjab,  where  a  mass 
movement  has  occurred.     See  p.  106. 

*  In  1901  nearly  60,000  Christians  in  Travancore  connected  with 
Congregationalist  missions  were  classified  as  Protestant  or  un-sectarian.  If 
these  be  added  to  the  1901  figures,  the  rate  of  increase  would  appear  to  have 
been  about  38  per  cent. 


*  See  Census  of  India  Re-port,  vol.  i,  pt.  i.  p.  133. 


122  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  preceding  table  afifords  information  which  will  enable 
us  to  appreciate  the  present  strength  and  the  rates  of  increase 
of  the  chief  Churches  or  religious  organizations  in  India. 

The  Romo-Syrians  who  are  found  in  Travancore 
acknowledge  the  authority  of  the  Pope,  but  their  services 
are  in  the  Syrian  language  and  they  follow  in  part  the 
Syrian  ritual.  If  they  are  included  in  the  E.G.  returns,  it 
appears  that  slightly  over  half  the  Indian  Christians  were 
connected  with  the  E.C.  Church  when  the  census  was 
taken  in  1911.  The  rate  of  increase  for  the  decade  in 
the  case  of  the  Roman  Catholic  missions  was  only  25  per 
cent,  as  compared  with  45  per  cent,  for  the  Anglican  and 
Protestant  missions  taken  together.  If  we  suppose  that  the 
proportionate  rates  of  increase  have  been  maintained,  the 
converts  connected  with  the  E.C.  Church  within  the  Indian 
Empire  will  now  (1915)  number  about  1,980,000  as 
against  rather  more  than  2,000,000  converts  connected 
with  non-Eoman  missions.  In  addition  to  the  E.C.  Indian 
Christians  within  the  Indian  Empire  there  are,  according 
to  a  return  made  by  E.C.  missionaries  six  months  after  the 
census  was  taken,  25,918  in  French  and  296,148  in 
Portuguese  territory  within  the  Indian  Peninsula.  Their 
rate  of  increase  is  probably  less  than  that  of  the  E.C. 
Christians  within  the  Indian  Empire.  In  the  province  of 
Madras,  where  the  Eoman  Catholics  are  most  numerous, 
they  have  increased  only  by  8  per  cent.,  the  rate  of  increase 
being  slightly  in  excess  of  that  of  the  general  population. 
In  Behar  and  Orissa  (chiefly  in  the  Eanchi  district  and  the 
state  of  Gangpur)  they  have  gained  68  per  cent.,  in  Burma 
62  per  cent.,  in  Bombay  35  per  cent.,  and  in  Bengal 
1 9  per  cent.  Their  greatest  progress  has  been  attained  in 
Jashpur  State  in  the  Central  Provinces  and  Berar,  where 
they  have  now  33,000  adherents,  chiefly  aboriginal  Oraons, 
practically  all  of  whom  "  have  been  gathered  into  the  fold  " 
since  1901. 

The  rate  of  increase  of  the  E.G.  Church  in  the  Indian 
Empire  taken  as  a  whole  is  slower  than  that  of  any  other 
large  body  of  Christians  in  India. 


INDIA  123 

Anglican  Missions. — In  interpreting  the  figures  which 
are  given  for  Christians  connected  with  the  Anglican  Church 
it  should  be  noted  that  in  1901  and  in  the  earlier  returns 
all  Indians  who  called  themselves  Protestants,  and  did  not 
claim  to  belong  to  any  particular  Church  or  body,  were 
returned  as  Anglicans.  In  this  way,  92,644  Christians 
were  added  to  the  Anglican  total  in  1901.  In  the  census 
for  1911  all  Protestants  who  did  not  claim  to  belong  to 
any  particular  Church  were  entered  in  a  separate  column 
by  themselves.  In  order,  therefore,  to  compare  the  number 
of  Christians  connected  with  Anglican  missions  to-day 
with  those  which  existed  in  1901,  we  must  deduct  from 
the  returns  for  1901  92,644.  We  then  discover  that  the 
number  of  these  Christians  has  increased  during  the  past 
ten  years  from  213,273  to  332,807 — that  is,  an  increase 
of  56*2  per  cent. 

The  editor  of  the  Government  Census  for  1901, 
referring  to  the  92,644  Christians  who  returned  them- 
selves as  belonging  to  no  denomination  and  were 
wrongly  added  to  the  Anglican  totals,  says :  "  Of 
these  59,810  were  returned  in  Travancore,  where 
the  majority  were  probably  members  of  the  London 
Mission."  ^ 

The  Anglican  Church  in  India  comes  next  in  point  of 
numbers  to  the  E.C.  Church,  but  it  includes  only  one- 
eleventh  of  the  Indian  Christians. 

The  principal  centre  of  the  Baptists  is  in  the  Madras 
Presidency,  where  about  two-fifths  of  their  converts  are 
found,  chiefly  in  the  districts  of  Guntur,  Nellore,  Kurnool, 
and  Kistna.  In  Burma,  where  there  are  120,000 
converts,  they  have  nearly  doubled  their  number,  but, 
according  to  the  Census  Report,  "  the  increase  is  probably 
less  than  would  appear  from  the  figures,  as  in  1901  many 
failed  to  return  their  sect,  and  were  thus  not  shown  as 
Baptists."  In  Burma  the  Baptists  have  by  far  the  largest 
number  of  Christians:  thus  the  Baptists  have  120,549,  the 
Roman  Catholics   50,770,  and  the  Anglicans  9999.     In 

^  Vol.  i.  pt.  i.  p.  387,  note. 


124  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Assam,  where  their  numbers  are  much  smaller,  the  pro 
portional  increase  has  been  greater. 

The  Syrians  (excluding  Eomo-Syrians)  show  an  increase 
of  66,420,  or  26*7  per  cent.  By  far  the  largest  number 
of  Syrian  Christians  are  in  the  Travancore  State.  Most  of 
the  rest  are  in  Cochin.  Madras  contains  over  20,000 
(see  p.  66  f). 

The  Lutherans,  whose  actual  increase  in  the  decade  has 
been  63,074  Indians,  have  increased  at  the  rate  of 
41  per  cent.;  104,074  out  of  a  total  of  216,842  are  in 
the  Madras  Presidency.  Here  their  increase  has  been  at 
the  rate  of  35  per  cent.  In  the  province  of  Bihar  and 
Orissa,  where  their  numbers  are  nearly  88,000,  they  have 
increased  at  the  rate  of  43  per  cent. 

The  Presbyterians  show  an  actual  increase  of  121,270 
Indians,  which  is  larger  than  any  other  Protestant  denomi- 
nation. Their  numbers  for  1901  have  been  multiplied 
three  and  five-sixth  times  in  the  course  of  the  decade.  The 
most  remarkable  progress  has  been  made  in  the  Punjab, 
which  now  contains  95,000  Presbyterians,  against  only 
5000  in  1901;  in  the  two  districts  of  Sialkot  and 
Gujranwala  alone  there  are  now  52,000,  whereas  in  1901 
there  were  only  500.  Most  of  the  converts  belong  to 
the  Chuhra,  Chamar,  and  other  depressed  castes.  In  the 
United  Provinces  there  are  14,000  Presbyterians,  or  nearly 
three  times  as  many  as  in  1901. 

In  Assam  there  are  31,000  converts,  chiefly  connected 
with  the  Welsh  Calvinistic  Mission  in  the  Khasi  and 
Jaintia  hills,  where  their  number  has  risen  from  16,000 
to  28,000. 

The  Methodists  (most  of  whom  are  connected  with  the 
A.M.E.C.  missions)  have  doubled  their  numbers  in  the 
United  Provinces  in  the  course  of  the  decade,  and  have  a 
large  absolute  majority  of  Christians  of  all  races  taken 
together  in  these  Provinces — 104,148  out  of  a  total  of 
177,949.  Three-fifths  of  the  present  strength  of  the 
Methodists  are  in  the  United  Provinces.  Their  rate  of 
increase  has  been  higher  in  the  Punjab,  where  they  now 


INDIA  125 

number  11,582  Indians:  in  Bombay  11,609,  Baroda  4833, 
and  Hyderabad  8121.  Their  total  of  Indian  Christians 
(162,367)  is  two  and  one-third  times  as  large  as  in  1901. 
Their  total  increase  of  Indian  Christians  in  the  decade  has 
been  93,878. 

The  CongregationalistSy  according  to  the  census  figures, 
have  gained  96,927,  though  in  1901  their  numbers  were 
only  37,313,  an  increase  at  the  rate  of  259*7  per  cent. 
This  increase,  however,  is  largely  artificial,  due  mainly  to 
Congregationalists  in  1901  being  put  down  as  Protestant 
or  Unsectarian.  If  (as  is  suggested  by  the  editor  of  the 
Census  returns)  the  figure  59,810  was  added  to  37,313, 
the  actual  increase  in  the  decade  would  be  reduced  to 
37,117,  or  38  per  cent.  The  Congregationalists  number 
134,240  Indian  Christians.  Of  these  81,499  are  in 
Travancore,  36,565  in  Madras,  11,519  in  Bombay,  and 
2336  in  Bengal. 

The  Salvationists  have  grown  from  18,847  to  52,199, 
at  the  rate  of  176'4  per  cent.  In  the  Punjab  they  have 
now  17,970,  as  against  a  few  hundreds  in  1901.  In 
Travancore  their  present  strength  of  16,759  is  five  times 
what  it  was  ten  years  ago.  In  Bombay  they  number  9924 
Indians,  in  Madras  4876,  in  Baroda  1540. 

Of  the  effect  of  conversion  on  the  Indian  Christians 
themselves,  Mr.  Blunt  (one  of  the  Provincial  Superin- 
tendents of  the  Census),  writes : 

"The  missionaries  all  these  years  have  been  providing 
the  corpus  sanum  (if  one  thing  is  noticeable  about  Indian 
Christians  it  is  their  greater  cleanliness  in  dress  and  habits), 
and  now  they  are  being  rewarded  by  the  appearance  of  the 
mens  sana.  The  new  convert,  maybe,  is  no  better  than  his 
predecessors;  but  a  new  generation  of  converts  is  now 
growing  up.  If  the  missionaries  could  and  can  get  little  out 
of  that  first  generation,  the  second  generation  is  in  their 
hands  from  their  earliest  years.  The  children  of  the 
converts  born  in  Christianity  are  very  different  from  their 
parents ;  their  grandchildren  will  be  better  still.  It  is  this 
which  provides  the  other  side  to  the  black  picture  so  often 
drawn  of  the  inefficiency  of  Christian  conversion.    And  this 


126  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

generation  is  now  beginning  to  make  its  influence  felt.  The 
Hindu  fellows  of  these  converts  have  now  to  acknowledge 
not  only  that  they  are  in  many  material  ways  better  off 
than  themselves,  but  that  they  are  also  better  men." 

The  Census  Superintendent  of  the  Mysore  State,  him- 
self a  Hindu,  says  that  the  missionaries  work  mainly  among 
the  backward  classes,  and  that 

"  the  enlightening  influence  of  Christianity  is  patent  in  the 
higher  standard  of  comfort  of  the  converts,  and  their  sober, 
disciplined,  and  busy  lives.  To  take  education,  for  instance : 
we  find  that  among  Indian  Christians  no  less  than 
11,523  persons,  or  25  per  cent.,  are  returned  as  literate,  while 
for  the  total  population  of  the  State  the  percentage  is  only 
6.  .  .  .  The  success  in  gaining  converts  is  not  now  so  marked 
as  the  spread  of  a  knowledge  of  Christian  tenets  and 
standards  of  morality." 

The  figures  of  the  Indian  census  returns  which  we  have 
been  considering,  whilst  they  afford  mathematical  demon- 
stration that  the  number  of  Christians  is  increasing  in 
India,  are  but  a  skeleton  outline.  They  need  to  be  clothed 
with  flesh  and  blood  in  order  that  their  significance  may 
be  appreciated.  It  is  instructive  to  learn  that  India  is 
becoming  Christian  at  a  rate  unprecedented  in  the  history 
of  the  world,  but  to  realize  what  this  means  one  needs  to 
go  out  to  India  and  to  walk  through  the  districts  where  the 
Christian  faith  is  being  taught,  and  to  note  the  changes 
which  are  taking  place.  A  visitor  will  not  need  to  ask  as 
he  enters  any  particular  village  whether  its  inhabitants  are 
Christians.  A  glance  at  their  faces,  or  even  at  the  faces 
of  their  children,  will  show  whether  the  spirit  of  fear, 
engendered  by  the  debased  form  of  Hinduism  which  is 
professed  in  the  average  Hindu  village,  has  been  exorcised, 
and  whether  Christian  hope  and  freedom  have  taken  its 
place.  He  may  find  many  who  call  themselves  Christians, 
but  whose  lives  are  unworthy  of  their  profession ;  but  the 
proportion  will  not  be  as  large  as  he  will  have  been  pre- 
pared to  discover  if  he  is  acquainted  with  the  history  of 


INDIA  127 

Europe  during  the  centuries  which  succeeded  its  nominal 
conversion  to  Christianity,  nor  will  the  superficial 
Christianity  of  a  few  greatly  lessen  the  impression  which 
will  be  produced  upon  him  as  he  comes  to  understand  the 
marvellous  transformation  which  is  taking  place  in  the 
experience  alike  of  individuals  and  communities. 

It  is  easy  to  criticize  the  mass  movements  which  have 
taken  place  in  South  India  and  are  beginning  to  take 
place  in  the  north,  and  to  call  in  question  the  motives 
which,  in  some  instances,  lie  behind  these  movements. 
The  nominal  acceptance  of  Christianity  on  the  part  of  a 
community  is,  obviously,  no  substitute  for  the  conversion 
of  heart  and  character  which  can  alone  enable  individuals 
or  communities  to  lead  a  Christian  life,  but  in  many 
instances  the  nominal  and  to  some  extent  superficial  con- 
version of  a  community  may  be  regarded  as  the  almost 
indispensable  preparation  for  the  conversion  of  its  indi- 
vidual members.  The  atmosphere  which  caste  has  gener- 
ated is  so  unwholesome,  and  so  completely  destroys  the 
recognition  of  individual  responsibility,  that  until  this 
atmosphere  can  be  dispelled  it  is  well-nigh  impossible  for 
individuals  to  appreciate  the  liberty  wherewith  Christ 
would  set  them  free.  The  nominal  conversion  of  a  whole 
village  may  not  be  accompanied  by  many  signs  of  spiritual 
life,  but  it  brings  every  individual  in  the  village  within 
the  reach  of  spiritual  influences  and  renders  possible  the 
growth  of  the  Christian  character.  It  is  not  difficult  for 
the  critic  of  Christian  missions  to  discover  instances  in 
which  the  desire  for  Christian  instruction  on  the  part  of  a 
village  community  has  been  strengthened,  if  not  created, 
by  the  hope  of  material  advancement,  but  the  student  of 
missions,  who  is  familiar  with  the  many  unworthy  motives 
which  hastened  the  nominal  conversion  to  Christianity  of 
the  peoples  in  Northern  Europe,  will  not  be  unduly  dis- 
heartened when  he  realizes  that  in  the  history  of  the 
evangelization  of  non- Christian  countries  to-day  a  limited 
number  of  cases  are  to  be  found  which  recall  what  might 
almost  be  termed  the  normal  occurrences  of  the  past. 


128  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Missionary  Education. 

The  Government  has  come  to  realize  that  if  elementary 
education  is  to  be  spread  throughout  India  and  is  to  bring 
any  moral  gain  to  its  peoples,  its  efforts  must  be  largely 
helped  and  supplemented  by  the  missionaries.  These 
alone  are  in  a  position  to  supply  trained  Indian  teachers 
and  to  superintend  the  teaching  if  it  is  to  be  supplied  on 
any  large  scale.  In  the  province  of  Chota  Nagpur,  which 
is  chiefly  inhabited  by  races  that  have  not  embraced 
Hinduism,  the  Government  has  offered  to  place  the  whole 
school  system  of  the  province  under  the  direction  of  the 
three  missionary  societies  which  are  at  work  there,  i.e.  the 
S.P.G.,  the  E.G.  Mission,  which  is  manned  by  Belgian 
Jesuits,  and  the  German  Gossner  Mission.  Here,  and  in 
many  other  parts  of  India,  an  unlimited  opportunity  is 
offered  to  the  representatives  of  Christian  missionary 
societies  to  exercise  a  decisive  influence  upon  the  whole 
moral  and  religious  future  of  its  peoples. 

Missionary  Colleges. — The  Anglican  and  Protestant 
missionary  societies  have  38  colleges,  of  which  23  prepare 
for  the  B.A.  degree,  the  other  15  having  only  a  two  years' 
course  and  finishing  with  the  First  Arts  qualification.  In 
these  colleges  there  were  (in  1912)  5447  students,  includ- 
ing 61  women.  Of  these  students  4481  were  Hindus, 
530  Mohammedans,  and  436  Christians.  All  the  students 
receive  daily  instruction  in  the  Christian  Scriptures,  and 
of  those  attending  mission  schools  throughout  India  92 
per  cent,  are  non-Christians.  There  is  a  Christian 
college  for  women  at  Lucknow  and  one  has  recently  been 
organized  at  Madras.  This  latter  has  received  support 
from  eleven  British  and  American  missionary  societies. 
In  South  India  at  least  1000  Christians  are  university 
graduates. 

There  are  1163  boarding  and  high  schools  belonging 
to  missionary  societies  with  110,763  students. 

In  the  Christian  elementary  schools  there  are  about 
450,000  pupils,  of  whom   146,000  are  girls  and  170,000 


INDIA  129 

are  Christians.  The  160  industrial  schools  have  9125 
pupils. 

The  colleges  connected  with  the  Anglican  Church  in- 
clude St.  Stephen's  College,  Delhi  (S.P.G.) ;  St.  John's 
College,  Agra  (C.M.S.) ;  Christ  Church  College,  Cawnpore 
(S.P.G.) ;  Hazaribagh  College,  Chota  Nagpur  (D.U.M.) ; 
Trichinopoly  College  (S.P.G.) ;  the  C.M.S.  colleges,  at 
Madras,  Peshawar,  Amritsar,  Masulipatam,  and  Kottayam. 

Those  connected  with  the  Church  of  Scotland  include 
the  General  Assembly's  Institution,  Calcutta,  and  the 
college  at  Sialkot.  The  principal  colleges  supported  by 
the  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland  are  the  Christian 
College,  Madras,  the  Wilson  College,  Bombay,  and  Nagpur 
College. 

Those  connected  with  the  L.M.S.  include  the  Eamsay 
College  at  Almora  in  the  United  Provinces,  a  college  in 
Calcutta,  and  colleges  at  Bellary  and  Nagercoil  in  South 
India. 

Those  connected  with  the  American  Presbyterian 
missions  include  Forman  College,  Lahore,  and  the  Ewing 
Christian  College,  Allahabad. 

Those  connected  with  the  American  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  include  the  colleges  at  Lucknow  (for  men  and 
women)  and  Allahabad. 

Amongst  other  colleges  which  deserve  special  notice 
may  be  mentioned  the  Canadian  Presbyterian  college  at 
Indore,  the  Wesleyan  colleges  at  Bankura  and  Manargudi, 
and  the  American  Baptist  college  at  Ongole. 

The  total  number  of  students  attending  colleges  of 
university  standing  in  India  is  about  25,000,  and  of  these 
about  5500  are  at  missionary  colleges.  During  recent 
years  the  Government  of  India  has  realized  that  the 
provision  of  university  education  to  all  who  desired  it  has 
been  anything  but  an  unmixed  blessing  to  its  recipients, 
and  that  the  moral  atmosphere  of  many  of  the  university 
towns  was  injuriously  affecting  the  characters  of  a  large 
number  of  university  students.  They  have  in  consequence 
adopted  the  policy  of  contributing  largely  towards  the  cost 
9 


130  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

of  establishing  residentiary  hostels  in  which  students  may 
live  under  sympathetic  supervision.  By  far  the  greater 
number  of  these  hostels  are  in  the  hands  of  the  missionary 
societies.  At  the  two  new  universities  of  Patna  and 
Dacca  the  Government  desire  that  the  majority  of  the 
students  should  live  in  such  hostels.  How  great  is  the 
need  of  establishing  university  colleges  or  hostels  may  be 
gathered  from  a  statement  made  by  the  Rev.  W.  E.  S. 
Holland  of  Calcutta,  who  writes  : 

"  Seven  thousand  Bengali  students  congregate  in  Calcutta 
under  conditions  that  are  nothing  less  than  appalling.  The 
circumstance  that  determines  everything  else  is  their  ex- 
treme poverty.  A  mere  handful  are  in  properly  supervised 
hostels.  A  good  many  live  at  home.  The  remainder  are 
huddled  together  in  the  cheapest  lodgings  they  can  find; 
so  that  the  slums  and  student  quarter  are  almost  inter- 
changeable terms.  Fancy  Oxford  transferred  to  lodgings 
in  the  slums  of  Whitechapel ;  and  picture  an  England  with 
its  leading  classes  educated  thus !  The  moral  and  sanitary 
environment  is  deplorable  ...  80  per  cent,  [of  the  students] 
join  no  college  societies,  90  per  cent,  play  no  games ;  their 
only  recreation  a  slack  stroll  up  and  down  College  Street, 
their  only  pabulum  the  gutter-press  of  Calcutta." 

At  Dacca  and  Patna  hostels  to  accommodate  200 
students  are  being  built  almost  entirely  at  Government 
expense  which  are  to  be  under  the  direction  of  the  Oxford 
University  Mission  in  the  one  case  and  of  the  C.M.S.  in 
the  other. 

Interest  in  education  has  been  steadily  increasing 
throughout  India  during  recent  years.  According  to  the 
Government  Quinquennial  Eeview  published  in  1914,  the 
number  of  boys  in  attendance  at  secondary  schools  in 
which  English  is  taught  went  up  from  473,000  to  667,000 
between  1907  and  1912.  During  the  same  period  the 
number  attending  primary  schools  went  up  from  3,986,000 
to  4,998,000.  Of  these  about  a  quarter  were  attending 
missionary  schools.  During  the  year  1912—13  the  total 
increase  of  pupils  attending  all  kinds  of  schools  was  nearly 
400,000. 


INDIA  131 

The  backward  condition  of  female  education  may  be 
inferred  from  the  fact  that  whilst  nearly  30  per  cent,  of 
boys  of  school-going  age  were  at  school,  the  proportion  of 
girls  was  only  5  per  cent.  During  the  period  1907-12 
the  number  of  girls  in  primary  schools  increased  from 
645,028  to  952,911. 

Seminaries. — Of  Anglican  seminaries  for  the  training 
of  Indian  clergy  the  S.P.Gr.  and  C.M.S.  each  have  one  in 
Madras;  the  S.P.G.  has  also  Bishop's  College,  Calcutta 
(which  is  being  re-organized) ;  the  C.M.S.  has  also  divinity 
schools  at  Lahore,  Allahabad,  Calcutta,  Poona,  and  Kottayam. 
The  American  Board  (A.B.C.F.M.)  has  seminaries  at  Madura 
and  Ahmadnagar,  the  A.M.E.C.  at  Bareilly,  the  Lutheran 
Mission  at  Tranquebar,  the  A.P.M.  at  Saharampur,  the 
A.U.P.M.  at  Eawal  Pindi,  and  the  Baptists  have  the  theo- 
logical college  at  Seramporc,  which  has  the  standing  of  a 
university.  In  1910  a  United  Theological  College  was 
established  at  Bangalore  which  is  supported  by  the  L.M.S., 
W.M.S.,  A.B.C.F.M.,  the  American  Eeformed  Church,  and 
the  U.F.C.  of  Scotland.  The  largest  theological  seminary 
in  the  Indian  Empire  is  that  at  Insein  in  Burma,  which  is 
supported  by  the  A.B.M.  and  has  160  students. 

Medical  Missions. 

Anglican. — The  C.M.S.  has  hospitals  at  Srinagar  in 
Kashmir,  Peshawar,  Bannu,  Quetta,  Dera  Ismail  Khan, 
all  on  the  North-West  Frontier;  and  at  Amritsar  and 
Multan  in  the  Punjab.  The  S.P.G.  has  hospitals  at  Delhi, 
Cawnpore,  Hazaribagh  (D.U.M.),  Murhu  in  Chota  Nagpur, 
and  at  Nazareth  and  Eamnad  in  South  India.  The  Church 
of  England  Zenana  Missionary  Society  works  to  a  large 
extent  in  conjunction  with  the  C.M.S.  and  maintains 
hospitals  at  Peshawar,  Quetta,  Tarn  Taran,  Dera  Ismail 
Khan,  Amritsar,  Bangalore,  etc. 

The  U.F.C.  of  Scotland  maintains  hospitals  at  Ajmer, 
Udaipur,  Jodhpur,  Nasirabad,  Poona,  Nagpur,  Bhandara, 
and  Wardha.     In  the  Santal  country  it  has  three  medical 


132  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

missions  and  in  the  Madras  Presidency  it  has  hospitals  for 
women  at  Eoyapuram  and  ConjeveraQi.  It  also  supports 
a  medical  mission  at  Aden  in  Arabia.  The  Church  of 
Scotland  has  medical  missions  for  women  at  Poona,  Gujerat, 
and  at  Sholinghur  in  Madras. 

The  Canadian  Presbyterians  maintain  hospitals  for 
women  at  Neemuch,  Indore,  and  Dhar,  and  have  several 
other  general  hospitals.  The  A.U.P.M.  has  hospitals  for 
women  at  Jhelum  and  Sialkot. 

The  A.  Preslyterian  Church  has  a  large  medical  mission 
at  Miraj  in  the  South  Maratha  country.  It  has  also 
stations  at  Kolhapur,  Vengurla,  and  Kodoli  in  the  same 
district,  and  at  Sabathu,  Ambala,  Ferozepore,  Kasur, 
Allahabad,  and  Fategarh.  The  Irish  Presbyterians  have  a 
hospital  at  Anand  in  Gujerat. 

The  L.M.S.  has  a  large  medical  mission  at  Neyoor  in 
Travancore.  It  has  also  hospitals  at  Jammalamadugu  in 
the  Telugu  country,  and  at  Kachwa,  Alraora,  and  Jiagauj 
in  North  India. 

The  A.B.C.F.M.  has  medical  missions  in  the  Marathi 
country,  at  Madura  and  in  Ceylon. 

The  A.  Baptist  F.M.S.  has  medical  missions  in  Burma, 
Assam,  and  in  the  Telugu  country. 

The  W.M.S.  carries  on  medical  work  chiefly  amongst 
women  in  South  India.  It  supports  hospitals  at  Mysore, 
Hassan,  Ikkadu,  Medak,  Nizamabad,  Nagari,  and  Madras. 

The  A.M.E.C.  has  hospitals  at  Bareilly,  Bhot,  Brindabun, 
Baroda,  Kolar,  and  Bidar. 

The  Zenana  Bible  and  Medical  Mission  has  hospitals  at 
Benares,  Patna,  Lucknow,  and  Nasik. 

The  Basel  Mission  has  medical  stations  at  Calicut  and 
Betgeri-Gadag. 

The  Salvation  Army  has  hospitals  at  Nagercoil,  Anand, 
Moradabad,  and  Ani. 

In  addition  to  these  there  are  a  large  number  of 
hospitals  and  medical  missionaries  connected  with  smaller 
missionary  societies.  In  1910  there  were  in  mission 
hospitals  about  50,000   in-patients,  more  than   1,000,000 


INDIA  133 

out-patients,  and  over  56,000  surgical  operations.  Train- 
ing institutions  for  Indian  doctors  and  nurses  have  been 
founded  at  Ludhiana  and  Agra. 

The  greatness  of  the  need  to  which  medical  missionaries 
minister  may  be  gathered  from  a  recent  statement  made 
by  the  Inspector- General  of  Civil  Hospitals  in  Bengal,  to 
the  effect  that  in  order  to  supply  the  rural  districts  with 
dispensaries  sufficient  to  bring  the  supply  of  medical  aid  up 
to  the  lowest  standard  that  is  considered  necessary  in 
England,  the  agencies  would  have  to  be  multiplied  by  40. 

Work  amongst  Indian  Moslems. 

The  first  missionary  to  work  amongst  Moslems  in  India 
was  Geronimo  Xavier,  who  came  to  Lahore  from  Goa  in 
1596.  He  wrote  three  books — a  Life  of  Christ,  a  Life  of 
St.  Peter,  and  a  disquisition  on  the  religion  of  Islam.  It 
is  known  that  he  baptized  several  converts  (see  p.  77). 
Amongst  those  who  worked  amongst  Indian  Moslems  in  the 
nineteenth  century  should  be  mentioned  Dr.  C.  G.  Pfander, 
Bishop  French,  Robert  Clark,  Rev.  T.  P.  Hughes,  Rev.  R 
Bateman,  Dr.  Imad-ud-din,  and  Safdar  Ali.  In  1856  the 
Harris  school,  which  is  under  the  charge  of  the  C.M.S.,  was 
opened  in  Madras.  The  C.M.S.  has  also  some  work  amongst 
Moslems  in  Hyderabad  and  Alleppey.  The  Church  of 
England  Zenana  Missionary  Society  supports  schools  for 
Moslem  girls  in  Madras,  Bangalore,  Mysore  city,  Ellore, 
Bezwada,  Masulipatam,  and  Khammamett,  the  last  four  being 
in  the  Telugu  country. 

The  S.P.G.  works  amongst  Moslems  in  Delhi,  where  a 
large  proportion  of  the  students  attending  St.  Stephen's 
College  are  Moslems. 

The  A.M.E.C.  Mission  has  work  at  Hyderabad  and  Kolar. 

The  U.F.C.S.  has  a  mission  at  Conjeveram  in  the 
Tamil  country,  and  the  L.M.S.  has  a  station  at  Trivandrum 
in  the  Malayalam  country. 

One  or  two  small  associations  have  work  amongst 
Moslems  in   the   Tamil    and  Telugu  country.     Industrial 


134  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

schools  have  been  established  in  Madras,  Bangalore,  and 
Guntur  to  provide  employment  for  destitute  Mohammedan 
women.  Most  of  the  larger  missionary  societies  carry  on 
indirect  mission  work  amongst  Moslems  in  connection  with 
their  missions  to  Hindus. 


Missionary  Societies  in  India. 

Of  the  117  foreign  and  19  indigenous  missionary 
societies  working  in  India  and  Ceylon,  41  are  British,  41 
American,  12  from  the  continent  of  Europe,  8  from 
Australia,  and  3  are  international.  The  three  societies 
which  support  the  largest  number  of  missionaries  are  the 
C.M.S.,  which  supports  (1913)  142  European  clergy;  the 
American  Baptists,  who  support  136,  and  the  A.M.E.C., 
which  supports  124  American  clergy.  The  tendency  of 
the  British  and  American  societies  is  to  leave  the  adminis- 
tration of  affairs  and  the  initiative  to  those  in  India,  whilst 
the  tendency  of  the  continental  missionary  societies  is  to 
retain  a  larger  measure  of  control  in  the  hands  of  the  home 
committees. 

The  following  is  a  brief  summary  of  the  work  of  some 
of  the  chief  missionary  societies  in  India  and  Ceylon,  with 
the  date  at  which  they  began  work. 

I.  Anglican. —  The  C.M.S.  (1816)  and  the  S.RG. 
(1818)  are  at  work  in  all  the  provinces  of  India.  The 
total  number  of  Indian  Christians  in  India  connected  with 
the  Anglican  missions  in  1914  was  about  350,000.  These 
include  the  converts  connected  with  the  C.M.S.,  the  S.P.G., 
the  Church  of  England  Zenana  Mission  (1851),  and  several 
smaller  Anglican  societies  or  associations. 

In  1913  the  C.M.S.  had  142  European  and  206  Indian 
clergy  and  196,000  baptized  Christians;  the  S.RG.  had 
104  European  and  139  Indian  clergy  and  113,000  baptized 
Christians. 

The  Church  of  England  Zenana  Missionary  Society 
(CE.Z.M.S.)  is  an  offshoot  formed  in  1880  from  the 
Indian  Female  Normal  School  and  Instruction  Society,  an 


INDIA  135 

undenominational  body  which  began  work  in  Bengal  in 
1851.  It  supports  medical  and  evangelistic  work  among 
women  in  Bengal,  the  Central  Provinces,  the  Punjab,  Sindh, 
and  in  several  parts  of  South  India.  This  society  works 
in  close  association  with  the  C.M.S.,  and  occasionally  the 
two  societies  interchange  workers.  (For  a  list  of  hospitals 
supported  by  the  C.E.Z.M.S.  see  p.  131). 

The  total  number  of  missionaries  supported  by  this 
society  in  India  in  1913  was  145  Europeans  and  256 
Indians. 

Of  the  twelve  bishops  in  India  who  superintend  the 
Anglican  missions,  seven  are  appointed  by  the  English 
Government — namely,  those  of  Calcutta,  Madras,  Bombay, 
Lahore,  Eangoon,  Lucknow,  and  Nagpur.  These  occupy  a 
somewhat  anomalous  position,  as  they  are  at  once  Govern- 
ment officials  and  in  charge  of  the  Government  chaplains, 
and  superintend  the  Anglican  missions  which  have  been 
established  in  their  dioceses.  The  Bishops  of  Travancore, 
Tinnevelly,  Chota  Nagpur  and  Assam,  are  not  appointed  or 
paid  by  Government  and  are  simply  missionary  bishops. 
The  Bishop  of  Dornakal,  who  was  appointed  by  the  Bishop 
of  Madras,  has  a  small  diocese  of  his  own  in  the  state  of 
Hyderabad.  He  also  acts  as  an  assistant  bishop  in  the 
diocese  of  Madras. 

As  long  as  there  is  an  English  army  in  India  and 
a  large  European  population  it  will  be  necessary  to 
have  English  chaplains  and  English  bishops.  It  would, 
however,  be  an  undoubted  advantage  from  a  missionary 
standpoint  if  the  bishops  who  are  responsible  for  the 
supervision  and  development  of  missionary  work  in 
India  were  no  longer  supported  or  appointed  by  the 
Government. 

II.  Baptist  Missionary  Societies, — The  English  B.M.S. 
(1792)  works  chiefly  in  Bengal,  Bihar,  the  United  Pro- 
vinces, and  the  Punjab.  Its  "  church  members  "  number 
about  11,000  and  its  adherents  30,000.  It  has  hostels 
for  students  at  Calcutta  and  Dacca,  and  a  university 
college  at  Serampore.     In  Ceylon,  where  it  began  work  in 


136  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

1812,  it  has  1057  "members."  The  Baptist  Zenana 
Mission  has   70   missionaries  and   100   girls'  schools. 

The  A.B.M.U,  (1813)  has  140  European  and  425 
Indian  clergy  and  135,000  baptized  adherents.  Nearly- 
half  these  are  in  Burma.  In  Assam  it  has  60  missionaries 
(including  men  and  women)  and  about  11,000  communi- 
cant members.  It  has  also  work  in  Bengal  and  the  Telugu 
country.  The  total  number  of  Baptists  in  India  in  1911 
was  332,000. 

III.  The  Lutheran  Missions.  —  Next  to  the  Anglican 
and  Baptist  missions  come,  in  point  of  numbers,  the 
Lutheran  missions,  the  largest  of  which  are  (1)  the 
Gossner  Mission  of  Berlin  (1841),  which  has  71,000 
baptized  adherents  in  Chota  Nagpur,  and  a  staff  of  50 
European  and  44  Indian  missionaries  and  400  Indian 
lay-workers  (see  p.  112).  (2)  The  Evangelical  National 
Missionary  Society  of  Stockholm  (1877)  has  1500  baptized 
Christians  and  23  European  (men)  missionaries  in  con- 
nection with  its  work  in  the  Central  Provinces.  (3)  The 
Schleswig  -  Holstein  Evangelical  Lutheran  Mission  (1883) 
works  among  the  Telugus  in  the  Vizagapatam  district 
and  amongst  the  Uriyas  of  the  Jeypore  Agency.  The 
Christian  community  numbers  about  15,000  and  is 
ministered  to  by  24  European  missionaries. 

The  Basel  Mission  (founded  in  1815)  started  work  on 
the  west  coast  of  India  in  1834.  It  has  26  principal 
stations  in  the  districts  of  Kanara,  Malabar,  Coorg,  the 
Nilgiris,  and  South  Maratha.  It  has  60  European  and 
26  Indian  clergy,  and  its  baptized  Christians  number 
20,000.  Its  constitution  is  Presbyterian  in  character. 
Industrial  work  forms  a  chief  feature  of  the  mission. 

The  industrial  mission  work  of  this  society  has  been 
criticized  by  many  of  the  supporters  of  Indian  missions, 
and  not  altogether  without  justification.  A  member  of 
the  Basel  Mission,  the  Rev.  A.  Scheuer  of  Tellicherry, 
writes : 

"This  system  is  not  without  its  disadvantages.  Most 
Christians  look  to  the  mission  for  everything ;  the  temporal 


INDIA  137 

and  the  spiritual  are  too  closely  allied,  and  therefore  often 
confounded.  The  factories  attracted  undesirable  converts. 
In  the  minds  of  the  people  mission  work  became  associated 
with  providing  a  living.  Well-to-do  Hindus  may  not  seldom 
have  stood  aloof  from  the  Church  because  they  needed  no 
material  help.  .  .  .  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  these 
industrials  have  been  very  helpful  factors  in  building  up  a 
few  strong  congregations  in  the  most  caste-ridden  parts  of 
India.  But  it  remains  doubtful  if  without  them  a  smaller 
and  more  efficient  Church,  better  distributed,  would  not 
in  the  long-run  have  amply  compensated  for  speedier 
numerical  success."  ^ 

There  are  also  two  American  Lutheran  Missions,  the 
General  Synod  (1842)  with  its  headquarters  at  Guntur, 
and  the  General  Council  with  its  headquarters  at  Rajah- 
mundry.  The  former  has  over  40,000  adherents,  which 
include  over  1000  Sudra  converts ;  the  latter,  which 
started  in  1869,  has  about  17,000  adherents. 

The  Danish  Evangelical  Lutheran  Missionary  Society 
(1867)  has  29  European  missionaries,  5  Indian  pastors, 
and  about  1600  members  connected  with  its  work  at 
Pattambakam  in  South  Arcot.  The  total  number  of 
Christians  connected  with  the  Lutheran  missions  in  1911 
was  216,000. 

IV.  Freshyterian  Missions. — (1)  The  Foreign  Missions 
Committee  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  which  sent  out 
Alexander  Duff  as  its  first  missionary  (1829),  works  in 
Calcutta,  the  Eastern  Himalayas,  the  Punjab,  Poona,  and 
Madras.  It  has  77  European  agents  (32  men  and  45 
women)  and  16,000  baptized  Christians. 

(2)  The  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland  (U.F.C.S.)  in- 
cludes three  missions  which  existed  before  the  time  of  the 
Disruption  in  Western  India  (1823),  Calcutta  (1829),  and 
Madras  (1837).  Its  other  missions  are  in  Eajputana, 
Santalia,  and  in  the  Central  Provinces.  The  European 
workers  which  it  supports  include  56  ordained  and  32 
unordained  men  and  117  women.  Its  Indian  workers 
include     18     ordained    men.     There    are     about    12,000 

^  Year-Book  of  Indian  Missions  (1912),  p.  507. 


138  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

persons  "in  fellowship  with  the  Church."  It  supports 
16  medical  stations.  The  Women's  Foreign  Mission 
in  connection  with  the  U.F.C.  of  Scotland  supports  275 
schools  with  15,000  scholars.  The  Christian  College  at 
Madras  founded  by  this  society  also  receives  support  from 
the  C.M.S.,  the  W.M.S.,  and  the  Church  of  Scotland 
Mission. 

(3)  American  Presbyterian  Missions. — The  chief  centres 
of  work  are  in  the  Punjab  (1846),  Allahabad  (1836),  and 
in  the  state  of  Kolhapur  (1852),  which  lies  about  150 
miles  south  of  Bombay.  It  supports  university  colleges 
at  Lahore  and  Allahabad  (see  p.  91). 

(4)  The  Canadian  Presbyterian  Mission  (1877)  has 
eleven  chief  stations,  mostly  in  Central  India.  It  has  an 
important  college  at  Indore.  It  supports  a  good  deal  of 
medical  work,  including  three  hospitals  for  women. 

The  total  number  of  Indian  Christians  connected  with 
Presbyterian  missions  in  1911  was  164,000. 

V.  Methodist  Missions. — (1)  The  largest  Methodist  mis- 
sion is  that  of  the  A.M.E.C.,  which  works  in  many  different 
parts  of  India.  This  society  has  done  excellent  educa- 
tional, medical,  and  industrial  work.  In  the  carrying  out 
of  its  evangelistic  work  it  has  been  content  to  accept  a 
lower  standard  as  a  qualification  for  baptism  than  that 
accepted  by  other  societies,  and  complaints,  which  have 
often  been  well  grounded,  have  been  made  against  its 
representatives  that  the  society  has  established  itself  in 
areas  already  occupied  by  other  societies,  and  has  baptized 
large  numbers  of  converts  who  were  in  course  of  being 
prepared  for  baptism  by  other  missions.  It  is  greatly  to 
be  hoped  that  those  who  are  responsible  for  the  direction  of 
its  policy  will  fall  into  line  with  that  adopted  by  all  other 
great  societies  with  the  exception  of  the  representatives  of 
the  RC.  Church  and  of  the  Salvation  Army. 

The  A.M.E.C.  also  works  to  a  considerable  extent 
amongst  Europeans  and  Eurasians  in  India.  It  has  112 
American  and  264  Indian  ministers. 

(2)  The  Wesley  an  Methodist  Missionary  Society  (W.M.S.) 


INDIA  139 

supports  work  in  Ceylon  (1814),  Madras,  ISTegapatani 
Hyderabad,  and  Mysore,  and  in  North  India  in  Bengal, 
Lucknow,  Bombay,  and  Burma.  A  large  part  of  its  work 
is  amongst  Europeans  and  Eurasians. 

The  total  number  of  Indian  Christians  connected  with 
Methodist  missions  in  1911  was  162,000.  (In  1912  the 
A.M.E.C.  claimed  to  have  185,000  "baptized  adherents.") 

VI.  Congregationalist  Missions. — (1)  The  London  Mis- 
sionary Society  (L.M.S.)  occupies  10  centres  in  North 
India,  12  in  South  India,  and  6  in  Travancore.  In  connec- 
tion with  its  missions  in  North  India  it  has  about  4000,  in 
South  India  about  33,000,  and  in  Travancore  about  81,000 
Christians.  Its  staff  consists  of  70  European  men,  50 
European  women,  and  41  Indian  clergy. 

(2)  The  missions  of  the  American  Board  support 
29  American  and  83  Indian  clergy  attached  to  three 
principal  centres — Ahmadnagar,  the  Jaffna  peninsula  in 
Ceylon,  and  the  Madura  district.  It  has  about  40,000 
Christian  adherents.     It  supports  6  mission  hospitals. 

The  total  number  of  Christians  connected  with 
Congregational  missions  in   1911   was   134,000. 

VII.  The  Salvation  Army  employs  207  European  and 
2285  Indian  officers  and  teachers.  Its  work  is  carried  on 
in  13  different  districts  and  in  12  languages,  its  general 
headquarters  being  at  Simla.  The  contributions  raised  in 
India  and  Ceylon  equal  in  amount  those  sent  from 
England.  It  supports  3  hospitals,  21  industrial  boarding 
schools,  6  farm  colonies,  17  weaving  schools,  and  11  settle- 
ments for  criminal  tribes  accommodating  2300  persons 
(see  p.  125). 

The  Indian  National  Missionary  Society. — One  of  the 
most  hopeful  developments  of  missionary  work  in  India 
during  recent  years  has  been  the  formation  of  the  National 
Missionary  Society  of  India,  which  was  first  organized  on 
Christmas  Day,  1905,  and  began  its  missionary  operations 
in  1907.      Mr.  K.  T.  Paul,  the  Secretary,  writes: 

"  The  society  is  strictly  denominational  in  the  evangel- 
istic work  done  in  its  fields.     Each  field  is  worked  in  a 


140  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

particular  connection  exclusively  of  others.  For  instance, 
the  Punjab  field  is  Anglican,  to  which  only  those  candi- 
dates who  are  of  that  connection  are  sent.  The  first 
missionary  to  that  field  was  ordained  by  the  Bishop  of 
Lahore  in  1911.  The  field  in  the  United  Provinces  is 
Presbyterian,  to  which  only  those  candidates  who  are  of 
that  connection  are  sent.  One  of  the  workers  there  was 
ordained  by  the  Presbytery  of  Ludhiana  (in  1912).  And 
so  with  the  other  fields,  one  of  which  is  in  connection  with 
the  ancient  Syrian  Church."  ^ 

The  "  five  fields  of  labour "  which  have  so  far  been 
selected  are  the  Montgomery  district  in  the  Punjab ;  the 
Nakkar  tahsil  of  the  Saharanpur  district  in  the  United 
Provinces ;  the  Omaher  taluk  in  the  Salem  district, 
Madras;  the  district  of  North  Kanara  in  the  south  of 
the  Bombay  Presidency ;  and  the  Karjat-Karmala  taluks 
near  Ahmadnagar.  In  1914  there  were  26  agents 
employed  by  the  society,  of  whom  12  had  received  a 
college  education  and  of  whom  2  were  doctors.  The 
converts  numbered  about  1000. 

Had  we  space,  we  should  like  to  refer  to  some  of  the 
movements  which  owe  their  origin  to  the  Christian  ideals 
which  missionaries  have  inculcated  in  India,  such  as  the 
Society  of  the  Servants  of  India,  founded  in  1906  by 
Mr.  Gokhale ;  the  Seva  Sadan  or  Sisters  of  India  Society, 
founded  in  Bombay  in  1908  by  the  Parsee  philanthropist 
Mr.  Malabari ;  or  the  Ramakrishna  Home  of  Service,  in 
Benares.  The  Seva  Sadan  Society  seeks  to  train  Indian 
women  for  educational,  medical,  social,  and  philanthropic 
work.  These  and  many  others  are  supported  by  those  who 
do  not  call  themselves  Christians  but  whose  lives  have  been 
influenced  by  the  spirit  of  Christ. 

Bihle  Societies. — An  important  missionary  agency  is  the 
British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society,  which  employs  many 
hundreds  of  Biblewomen  and  colporteurs  to  read  and  dis- 
tribute the  Bible.  Since  its  foundation  (1804)  it  has 
issued    in    the    languages    of    India    nearly    20,000,000 

*  Year -Book  of  Indian  Missions,  p.  431. 


INDIA  141 

portions  of  Scripture.  The  American  Bible  Society  (1817) 
does  similar  work  on  a  smaller  scale.  The  National  Bible 
Society  of  Scotland  (1861)  maintains  223  colporteurs  in 
India  and  Ceylon,  who  sold  in  1910  239,000  copies  of 
the  Scriptures. 

Roman  Catholic  Missions  in  India. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  early  missions  of  the 
R.C.  Church  in  India  and  to  the  work  which  it  is  carrying  on 
in  special  districts.  In  1886  India  and  Ceylon  were  placed 
under  a  regularly  constituted  hierarchy  with  eight  arch- 
bishoprics (Goa,  Calcutta,  Madras,  Bombay,  Pondicherry, 
Verapoly,  Agra,  and  Colombo).  The  total  number  of  bishops 
and  priests  (1912)  is  2653,  of  whom  1700  are  indigenous 
to  the  country  and  953  are  Europeans.  "Of  these 
European  missionaries  a  small  percentage  are  of  Irish  and 
a  still  smaller  percentage  of  English  descent.  The  rest  are 
members  of  various  religious  Orders  from  Italy,  Spain, 
France,  Holland,  Belgium,  and  Germany,  while  the  prelates, 
in  every  case  except  one,  belong  to  these  continental 
nationalities."  ^ 

B.C.  Colleges  and  Schools. — The  B.C.  Church  has  23 
seminaries  containing  700  candidates  for  the  priesthood, 
of  which  the  most  important  are  situated  at  Kaudy  in 
Ceylon,  Shembaganur  near  Trichinopoly,  Eanchi,  and 
Kurseong  near  Darjeeling.  It  has  1 1  colleges  which  prepare 
for  university  degrees  with  1300  students,  6  5  high  schools, 
248  middle  schools,  and  2438  elementary  schools  with 
98,000  pupils.  It  has  also  47  industrial  and  74  boarding 
schools  with  5917  pupils,  and  97  orphanages.  For  girls 
it  has  59  high  schools,  240  middle  class  schools,  and  672 
elementary  schools.  The  total  number  of  pupils  (1912) 
in  RC.  schools  is  143,000  boys  and  73,000  girls,  out  of 
whom  about  12,000  are  orphans.  The  boys'  schools  are 
for  the  most  part  managed  by  members  of  religious  Orders 
and  the  schools  for  girls  by  professed  Sisters. 

^  See  article  by  Father  E.  R.  Hull  in    The  Year-Book  of  Missions  in 
India,  p.  160. 


142  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Of  the  university  colleges  the  most  important  are 
St.  Xavier's  College,  Calcutta,  under  Belgian  Jesuits  (276 
students);  St.  Xavier's  College,  Bombay,  under  German 
Jesuits  (350  students);  St.  Joseph's  College,  Trichinopoly, 
under  French  Jesuits  (420  students). 

The  educational  establishments  are  to  a  large  extent 
supported  by  Government  grants-in-aid.  They  are  in  part 
maintained  by  the  two  European  societies,  the  Association 
for  the  Propagation  of  the  Faith  and  the  Society  for  the 
Holy  Childhood. 

Religious  Unity  in  South  India. 

In  1908  five  separate  missions  in  South  India  were 
organized  as  one  body  under  the  name  of  the  South  India 
United  Church — namely,  the  United  Free  Church  of 
Scotland  in  and  about  Madras,  the  Arcot  Mission  of  the 
Eeformed  Church  of  America,  the  American  Madura 
Mission,  and  two  London  Missionary  Society  missions — 
the  Travancore  Mission  and  the  South  Indian  District 
Committee  Mission.  Its  affairs  are  managed  by  a  small 
committee  elected  by  the  General  Assembly  which  meets 
once  in  two  years.  The  Basel  Evangelical  Mission  and 
one  or  two  other  missions  are  considering  the  possibility  of 
joining  the  South  India  United  Church. 

Proposals  have  also  been  made  to  incorporate  in  a 
"  Federation  of  Christian  Churches  in  India  "  all  churches 
and  societies  that  "  accept  the  Word  of  God  as  contained 
in  the  Scriptures  as  the  supreme  rule  of  faith  and  practice, 
and  whose  teaching  in  regard  to  God,  sin,  and  salvation 
is  in  general  agreement  with  the  great  body  of  Chris- 
tian truth  and  fundamental  doctrines  of  the  Christian 
faith." 

In  December  1911  a  Presbyterian  Alliance  was 
organized  in  Allahabad.  As  a  result  the  General 
Assemblies  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  the  U.F.C.  of 
Scotland,  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  America,  and  the 
Canadian  and  Irish  Presbyterian  Churches   approved  the 


INDIA  143 

scheme  and  voted  to  allow  their  Indian  Churches  to  join 
the  Union. 


Hie  number  of  missionaries  in  India. 

In  1912  there  were  5200  Anglican  and  Protestant 
missionaries  in  India  (compare  China,  4299).  Of  the 
1442  ordained  missionaries,  620  were  from  Great  Britain, 
559  from  the  U.S.A.,  and  222  from  the  continent  of 
Europe.  There  were  118  men  and  217  women  doctors.  Of 
the  total  number  of  missionaries,  2076  were  men  and 
3124  women;  of  these  latter,  1800  were  unmarried 
women.  Of  Indian  men  and  women  there  are  about  40,000 
who  devote  their  whole  time  to  missionary  work ;  of  these, 
1665  are  ordained.  Amongst  the  Indian  workers  there 
are  about  250  university  graduates,  most  of  whom  are 
teachers.  Of  the  40,000  Indian  workers  about  10,000 
are  women. 

The  difficulty  of  developing  an  educated  ministry 
supported  entirely  by  Indian  contributions  will  be  realized 
when  it  is  remembered  that  the  average  income  per  capita 
of  the  people  of  India  is  £2  per  annum.  At  the  present 
time  the  average  contribution  towards  the  support  of  his 
Church  made  by  each  member  of  the  Indian  Christian 
Churches  is  4s.  per  annum. 

The  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  which  works 
chiefly  amongst  students  in  the  larger  towns,  exercises  a 
widespread  influence.  The  Christian  Literature  Society 
(C.L.S.)  translates  and  produces  in  various  Indian  lan- 
guages books  bearing  directly  or  indirectly  upon  the 
Christian  faith,  and  thereby  furnishes  invaluable  aid  to  the 
missionary  societies. 

Philanthropic  Work, 

Some  idea  may  be  obtained  of  the  organized  philan- 
thropic work,  apart  from  that  of  medical  missions,  which 
is  being  done  by  missionary  societies  in  India  from  the 


144  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

following  statement.  The  figures  in  brackets  denote  the 
number  of  inmates  in  the  various  institutions.  There 
are  now  in  India  in  connection  with  missionary  societies : 
orphanages,  181  (13,400);  leper  hospitals  and  asylums, 
59  (4815) ;  institutions  for  blind  and  deaf  mutes,  8  (340) ; 
rescue  homes,  8  (360);  industrial  homes,  19  (1134); 
houses  for  widows,  15  (410). 


V. 

CEYLON. 

Soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  Portuguese,  who  effected 
a  settlement  in  Ceylon  early  in  the  sixteenth  century, 
some  Franciscan  monks  reached  Ceylon,  and  a  bishopric  of 
Colombo  was  established.  In  1544  St.  Francis  Xavier 
preached  among  the  Tamil  fishermen  of  Manaar  in  the 
kingdom  of  Jaffna  and  baptized  over  500  of  them.  These 
were  massacred  by  the  Kajah  of  Jaffna,  whose  kingdom 
was  conquered  by  the  Portuguese  in  1548.  The  Portuguese 
used  forcible  methods  of  conversion,  and  a  large  proportion 
of  the  people,  including  the  Brahmans,  were  baptized.  In 
the  south  of  the  island  less  violent  means  were  adopted, 
but  even  here  "  many  became  Christians  for  the  sake 
of  Portuguese  gold."  When  the  Dutch  expelled  the 
Portuguese  in  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  they 
strove  hard  to  induce  the  Singalese  to  adopt  the  Eeformed 
faith.  The  RC.  priests  were  banished,  E.C.  rites  were 
forbidden  on  pain  of  death,  and  the  people  were  ordered  to 
become  Protestants.  No  unbaptized  person  was  allowed  to 
hold  any  office  or  to  possess  land.  Before  the  end  of  the 
Dutch  occupation  it  had  been  realized  that  the  conversion 
of  the  people  was  merely  nominal,  and  when  pressure  was 
relaxed  the  number  of  the  Christians  rapidly  fell.  When 
the  English  gained  possession  of  the  island  in  1798, 
300,000  persons  registered  themselves  as  members  of  the 
Dutch  Church.  Of  these  a  few  were  intelligent  members, 
a  large  number  were  Eoman  Catholics,  but  the  majority  were 
Buddhists  or  Hindus.  The  Enghsh  Government  proclaimed 
religious  toleration,  but  did  nothing  to  teach  or  evangelize 

lO 


146  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

the  people.  As  a  result  of  the  religious  liberty  which  they 
established,  a  number  of  the  Singalese  declared  themselves 
to  be  Eoman  Catholics  and  a  larger  number  claimed  to  be 
Hindus  or  Buddhists.^ 

The  first  Protestant  missionary  to  establish  work  in 
Ceylon  in  the  nineteenth  century  was  James  Chater  of  the 
Baptist  M.S.  After  spehding  six  years  in  Burma,  he  reached 
Colombo  in  1812,  where  he  laboured  for  sixteen  years. 
His  successor,  the  Eev.  E.  Daniel,  did  much  to  spread 
Christianity  in  the  villages  near  Colombo.  The  B.M.S. 
has  now  4  European  missionaries  and  1057  baptized 
Christians,  its  chief  centres  of  work  being  Colombo,  Kandy, 
and  Eatnapura. 

In  1814  five  Wesleyan  missionaries  aYYived  and  started 
work  at  Jaffna  and  Batticaloa  for  the  Tamils,  and  at 
Matara  and  Galle  for  the  Singalese.  The  mission  proved 
discouraging  in  its  early  years,  but  afterwards  maintained 
a  steady  growth.  In  1842  work  was  started  among  the 
savage  Veddahs.  The  W.M.S.  has  training  colleges  at 
Colombo  and  Galle  and  a  large  number  of  day  and  board- 
ing schools  in  various  parts  of  Ceylon.  In  1913  the 
number  of  European  missionaries  was  26  and  of  communi- 
cants 6186. 

In  1816  four  missionaries  belonging  to  the  A.B.C.F.M. 
arrived,  and  in  the  following  year  started  work  at  Jaffna. 
The  work  of  this  society,  which  has  since  been  developed, 
has  been  concentrated  in  this  district.  A  special  feature 
of  the  mission,  especially  in  its  earlier  days,  has  been  the 
establishment  of  missionary  schools.  The  greater  part  of 
its  work  has  been  handed  over  to  Singalese,  and  but  little 
evangelistic  work  is  now  being  done.  In  1912  it  had 
a  staff  of  3  American  missionaries,  and  its  communicants 
numbered  2170. 

In  1818  four  missionaries  sent  by  the  C.M.S.  landed 
in  Ceylon  and,  like  their  predecessors,  received  a  warm 
welcome  from  the  Governor,  Sir  Eobert  Brownrigg.     They 

^  For  a  further  reference  to  the  relapse  of  the  Protestant  Christians  in 
Ceylon,  see  p.  20. 


CEYLON  147 

began  work  among  the  Tamils  at  Jaffna  and  among  the 
Singalese  at  Kandy.  The  mission  to  the  Tamil  coolies  in 
the  north  has  for  many  years  received  a  large  amount  of 
financial  support  from  the  English  planters,  who  have 
learnt  to  appreciate  its  value.  The  college  at  Kandy,  of 
which  the  Eev.  A.  G.  Fraser  is  the  Principal,  is  a  "  red- 
hot  centre  "  of  missionary  life  and  enthusiasm,  and  seems 
likely  to  exercise  a  far-reaching  influence  upon  the  prospects 
of  Christianity  in  Ceylon.  Another  important  college  be- 
longing to  the  mission  is  situated  at  Jaffna.  In  1913  it 
had  20  European  missionaries  and  5097  communicants. 

The  first  missionary  supported  by  the  S.P.G.  was 
stationed  at  Colombo  in  1840,  and  was  transferred  to 
Matara  in  the  south  in  the  following  year.  A  large  part 
of  the  work  which  this  society  has  helped  to  develop  has 
been  done  in  close  conjunction  with  Government  chaplains 
or  with  the  diocesan  clergy.  The  centre  of  its  educational 
work  is  St.  Thomas'  College,  Colombo,  which  has  recently 
been  rebuilt  on  a  new  site.  It  is  one  of  the  leading 
educational  institutions  in  Ceylon. 

In  1845  the  first  Anglican  Bishop  of  Colombo  (Dr. 
Chapman)  was  appointed. 

The  words  which  one  of  the  C.M.S.  missionaries  wrote 
in  1868,  on  the  occasion  of  the  jubilee  commemoration  of 
the  C.M.S.  Mission  in  Ceylon,  apply  to  the  work  of  all  the 
existing  societies.     He  wrote : 

"  A  more  arduous  task,  a  more  trying  field  of  labour,  it 
would  be  difficult  to  imagine.  .  .  .  Pure  Buddhists  and 
Hindus  are  tenfold  more  accessible  than  are  the  thousands 
of  relapsed  and  false  professors  of  Christianity.  .  .  .  The 
tradition  preserved  in  native  families  of  the  fact  that  their 
forefathers  were  once  Christians  and  afterwards  returned  to 
Buddhism  is  naturally  regarded  by  them  as  a  proof  of  the 
superiority  of  the  latter  religion ;  whilst  the  sight  of  churches, 
built  by  the  Dutch  but  now  gone  to  ruin,  adds  strength  to 
the  belief  that  Christianity  is  an  upstart  religion  which  has 
no  vitality,  and  which,  if  unsupported  by  the  ruling  powers, 
cannot  stand  before  their  own  venerated  system."  ^ 

»  ffistory  of  the  C.M.S.,  i.  218. 


148 


HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 


During  the  years  which  have  elapsed  since  these  words 
were  written,  Christianity  has  made  considerable  progress, 
but  the  missionaries  have  not  yet  got  rid  of  the  handicap 
created  by  the  religious  history  of  the  past  centuries. 

Other  societies  at  work  in  Ceylon  are  the  Salvation 
Army,  which  commenced  work  in  1882,  and  the  Friends* 
Foreign  Mission  Association,  which  began  in  1896. 

There  are  five  B,C.  dioceses  in  Ceylon — Colombo,  Kandy, 
Galle,  Trincomalee,  and  Jaffna.  The  missions  in  the 
dioceses  of  Colombo  and  Jaffna  are  conducted  by  the 
Oblates  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  those  in  Galle  and 
Trincomalee  by  the  Jesuits,  and  those  in  Kandy  by  the 
Silvestrine  Benedictines.  The  staff  includes  173  European 
and  67  native  priests.  The  European  priests  are  also 
engaged  in  ministering  to  European  residents.  The  number 
of  B.C.  Christians,  according  to  the  latest  B.C.  returns,  is 
345,628.  These  figures  include  about  1300  Europeans  and 
12,500  Burghers  {i.e.  Dutch  half-castes). 

The  Jesuits  are  in  charge  of  the  seminary  at  Kandy, 
which  was  established  in  1893  for  the  training  of  native 
priests. 

The  population  of  Ceylon  (excluding  the  military), 
according  to  the  census  of  1911,  is  4,105,535.  The 
following  table  gives  the  religious  profession  of  the  inhabit- 
ants as  shown  by  the  last  four  census  returns : — 


Total  Population  (including  Europeans). 


1881. 

1891. 

1901. 

1911. 

Christians       . 

267,977 

302,127 

349,239 

409,168 

Buddhists       • 

1,698,070 

1,877,043 

2,141,404 

2,474,270 

Hindus  . 

693,630 

616,932 

826,826 

932,696 

Mohammedans 

197,775 

211,995 

246,118 

283,582 

Of  the  total  Christian  population  of  409,000,  239,000 
were    low-country    Sinhalese,    6000     Kandyan    Singalese, 


CEYLON  149 

86,000  Ceylon  Tamils,  41,000  Indian  Tamils,  7470 
Europeans,  and  26,454  Burghers. 

The  Anglican  Christians  (who  included  4983  Europeans 
and  7299  Burghers)  numbered  41,095;  the  Wesleyans 
(who  included  1977  Burghers  and  310  Europeans) 
numbered  17,323;  the  Presbyterians  (who  included  663 
Europeans  and  2684  Burghers)  numbered  3546  ;  Baptists, 
3306  ;  Congregationalists,  2978;  Salvation  Army,  1042. 

The  figures  belonging  to  the  different  denominations 
given  in  these  census  returns  include  adherents  as  well  as 
baptized  Christians. 

During  the  decade  1901-11  the  percentage  of  increase 
in  the  Christian  population  was  16 '8,  whilst  that  of  the 
total  population  was  16'5.  In  the  Christian  schools  in 
Ceylon,  54,967  scholars  are  in  charge  of  Eoman  Catholics, 
32,713  of  Anglicans,  and  29,192  of  Wesleyans.  The  per- 
centage of  literates — i.e.  of  those  who  can  read — is  much 
higher  both  in  Ceylon  and  in  Burma  than  it  is  in  India, 
and  there  are  therefore  greater  opportunities  for  extend- 
ing missionary  influence  by  the  circulation  of  Christian 
literature. 

One  result  of  the  progress  of  Christian  missions  during 
recent  years  has  been  that  the  Buddhists,  who  include  the 
majority  of  the  inhabitants,  have  recently  awakened  to 
the  fact  that  Christianity  is  a  force  to  be  feared,  and 
therefore  deserving  of  active  opposition.  In  an  article 
entitled  "The  Buddhist  Eevival  in  Ceylon,"  ^  Mr. 
Ekanayake,  who  is  himself  a  Singalese  Christian,  describes 
the  remarkable  efforts  which  have  been  made  by  the 
Buddhists  in  different  parts  of  Ceylon  to  establish  schools 
and  to  organize  lectures  and  addresses  in  order  to 
counteract  the  spread  of  Christian  influences.     He  writes : 

"  Work  among  children,  which  was  entirely  unknown  in 
Buddhist  circles,  whether  in  the  earliest  or  in  the  latest 
days  of  Buddhism,  is  being  vigorously  carried  on.  Catechism, 
Sunday  schools,  religious  instruction  in  day  schools,  the 
teaching  of  Buddhist  stanzas  to  school  children,  and  their 

1  The  East  and  The  West,  July  1904. 


150  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

processions   to   temples   on   festival  days,  are  noteworthy 
features  of  work  amongst  children." 

Unfortunately,  it  does  not  appear  that  this  revival  of 
Buddhism  is  accompanied  by  any  serious  effort  to  bring 
the  debased  form  of  this  religion  which  is  found  in  Ceylon 
up  to  its  original  standard  or  ideals. 

"What  is  most  disappointing,"  writes  Mr.  Ekanayake. 
"is  that  in  spite  of  all  this  activity  there  is  no  attempt 
made  to  purify  Buddhism  of  its  corruptions  .  .  .  the 
worship  of  trees,  relics,  and  images  still  takes  place  .  .  . 
devil  worship  has  not  been  denounced,  but  still  goes  on, 
though  it  is  contrary  to  the  principles  of  Buddhism.  Caste, 
which  the  teaching  of  Buddhism  denounces,  is  strongly 
upheld  in  Buddhist  circles." 

From  the  missionary  standpoint  this  attempt  to 
revivify  Buddhism  is  perhaps  the  most  encouraging 
feature  of  the  present  situation.  The  fact  that  the  re- 
vival itself  is,  so  to  speak,  on  the  surface,  and  that  it  is 
doing  little  to  raise  the  religious  and  moral  standards  of 
the  people,  suggests  that  it  is  not  likely  to  interfere  for 
long  with  the  progress  of  Christian  missions. 


VI. 

BURMA. 

In  1603  Felipe  de  Brito,  a  Portuguese  adventurer,  estab- 
lished himself  as  Governor  of  Syriam  near  Eangoon.  He 
built  a  church  at  Syriam  and  began  to  destroy  the 
Buddhist  pagodas  and  to  force  the  Buddhists  to  become 
Christians.  After  ten  years  he  was  killed  by  the  king 
of  Ava,  and  his  wife  and  most  of  the  Portuguese  at 
Syriam  were  taken  as  slaves  to  Ava.  Their  descendants 
constitute  the  bulk  of  the  RC.  population  in  that  part  of 
the  country  to-day.  In  1692,  the  first  missionary  priests 
of  the  Society  of  Foreign  Missions  at  Paris  reached  Pegu. 
In  the  following  year  they  were  arrested  by  order  of  the 
king,  exposed  naked  to  the  bites  of  mosquitoes,  and  then 
sewn  up  in  sacks  and  thrown  into  the  Pegu  Eiver.  In 
1721  two  more  priests  arrived,  who  were  followed  by 
others. 

During  the  next  forty  years  a  bishop  and  several 
priests  were  murdered,  including  Father  Angelo,  who  was 
"a  skilled  doctor,"  but  the  work  continued.  By  1800 
there  were  two  RC.  churches  in  Eangoon  and  3000 
Christians,  but  in  1824,  on  the  outbreak  of  the  first 
Burmese  War,  the  two  churches  were  destroyed.  In  1857 
King  Mindon  helped  the  E.C.  priests  in  Mandalay  to 
build  a  church  and  a  mission  house.  Soon  after  this  the 
E.C.  mission  work  in  Burma  was  handed  over  to  the 
Foreign  Mission  Society  of  Paris,  and  Father  Bigandet, 
who  had  already  been  a  missionary  for  fourteen  years,  was 
consecrated  as  bishop.  He  became  one  of  the  chief 
authorities  on  the  language  and  religion  of  the  Burmese. 

»5i 


152  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  Christian  Brothers  started  work  at  Moulmein  in  1859 
and  at  Eangoon  in  1861.  In  1867  the  Milan  Society  for 
Foreign  Missions  took  charge  of  the  work  at  Toungoo  and 
in  East  Burma.  The  Eoman  Catholics  have  virtually 
abandoned  direct  evangelistic  work  amongst  the  Burmese, 
the  bulk  of  their  adherents  in  Burma  being  Tamils,  Pwo- 
Karens,  and  Eurasians.  They  have  also  done  good  work 
amongst  the  Chinese  immigrants.  During  the  decade 
1901-11  their  increase  in  Burma  was  at  the  rate  of 
62  per  cent.,  and  the  total  number  of  their  converts  in 
1911  was  50,770.  They  have  3  bishops  and  over  200 
European  priests,  monks,  and  nuns.  The  Kev.  W.  0. 
Purser  of  the  S.P.G.  Mission  writes : 

"The  Eoman  priests  have  won  the  admiration  of  the 
European  residents  by  the  devotion  of  their  lives.  Few 
return  to  Europe  after  coming  out  to  the  East,  and  the 
missionary  priests  live  right  among  the  natives.  The 
educational  and  social  work  of  the  Eoman  Catholics  is 
beyond  praise.  St.  Paul's  School,  Eangoon,  is  one  of  the 
largest  and  best  equipped  boys'  schools  in  the  East,  and  is 
staffed  by  the  'Teaching  Brothers,'  who  are  trained  lay 
teachers  and  give  their  labour  free.  It  is  the  wonderful 
organization  of  the  Eoman  Church,  as  shown  by  this  brother- 
hood of  teachers,  that  enables  it  to  compete  successfully 
with  other  Christian  bodies  in  India,  with  the  result  that 
many  Anglican  and  Nonconformist  children  are  being 
educated  in  E.C.  schools."  ^ 

Baptist  Missions, 

In  1806  five  students  sat  beneath  the  shelter  of  a 
haystack  in  Williamstown,  Massachusetts,  discussing  the 
possibility  of  evangelizing  the  world.  Mills,  one  of  their 
number,  suddenly  cried  out,  "  We  can  if  we  will,"  and  the 
cry  was  taken  up  and  repeated  by  his  four  companions. 
Five  years  later  Adoniram  Judson  joined  this  company, 
each  member  of  which  was  pledged  to  give  up  all  and  dare 
all  in  order  that  they  might  spread  the  Kingdom  of  Christ 
throughout  the  world. 

1  Missions  in  Burma,  p.  93. 


BURMA  153 

In  1810  Judson,  with  three  others,  offered  himself  for 
missionary  work  to  the  General  Association  of  the  Congre- 
gational Church,  and  as  a  result  the  American  Board  for 
Foreign  Missions  was  founded.  After  being  ordained  for 
the  Congregational  Church  he  and  his  companions  eventu- 
ally reached  Calcutta  in  1812,  where  soon  afterwards 
he  became  a  Baptist.  The  East  India  Company  having 
refused  him  permission  to  work  in  India,  he  arrived  on 
July  13,  1813,  at  Eangoon,  where  one  of  the  Careys  had 
already  (1807)  begun  missionary  work.  When  the  American 
Baptists  heard  of  Judson's  change  of  views,  they  determined 
to  support  him,  and  founded  the  society  which  is  now 
known  as  the  American  Baptist  Missionary  Union.  There- 
upon the  English  missionaries  in  Eangoon  handed  over 
their  work  to  this  society.  At  the  end  of  seven  years 
Judson  had  baptized  10  Burmese  converts. 

On  the  outbreak  of  the  Burmese  war  with  England 
in  1823,  he  and  his  companion,  a  medical  missionary 
named  Price,  were  thrown  into  prison,  and  for  twenty-one 
months  endured  the  greatest  hardships.  When  the  war 
was  over,  and  after  the  death  of  his  first  wife  (he  married 
three  times),  he  lived  the  life  of  a  hermit,  and  on  one 
occasion  fasted  for  forty  days  in  the  jungle.  In  1828 
Mr.  Boardman  baptized  the  first  convert  among  the 
Karens — Ko  Tha  Byu — who  became  an  apostle  to  his 
fellow-countrymen. 

Meanwhile  Judson  gave  himself  up  to  the  task  of 
translating  the  Bible  into  Burmese.  He  died  in  1850. 
Judson  believed  in  peregrinating  as  opposed  to  concentrated 
mission  work,  and  was  doubtful  as  to  the  value  of  mission- 
ary schools.  His  legacy  to  those  who  came  after  him  was 
the  inspiration  of  a  devoted  life  and  the  translation  of  the 
Bible  into  Burmese. 

In  1852  there  were  62  missionaries,  male  and  female, 
and  267  Burmese  and  7750  Karen  Christians  belonging 
to  the  A.B.M.  The  number  of  baptized  members  belong- 
ing to  this  mission  in  1911  were:  Burmese,  3182; 
Karens,    54,799;    Kachins,    371;    Chins,    1011;    Shans, 


154  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

338  ;  Takings,  308  ;  Muhsos,  9343  ;  Tamils,  465  ;  others, 
579 — making  a  total  of  70,396.  The  total  number  of 
Christian  adherents  belonging  to  the  mission  was  120,549. 
There  are  about  200  American  missionaries  (including 
wives)  and  2200  native  workers,  and  the  contributions  of 
the  native  congregations  amount  to  over  £20,000  per 
annum.  Of  the  976  churches  connected  with  this  mission, 
717  are  self-supporting.  Two  institutions  connected  with 
the  mission  deserve  special  notice : 

1,  The  Baptist  College  at  Eangoon,  which  is  affiliated 
to  Calcutta  University.  Its  new  buildings  were  opened  in 
1909  in  memory  of  Dr.  Cushing,  a  former  Principal  and 
the  translator  of  the  Bible  into  the  Shan  language. 

2.  The  theological  seminary  at  Insein,  established  in 
1845,  where  Karens,  Burmese,  Chins,  and  others  are 
trained  to  become  evangelists.  It  has  150  students  in 
residence. 

The  American  Methodist  Upiscopal  Mission  has  been 
represented  in  Lower  Burma  since  1878.  For  many  years 
its  missionaries  confined  themselves  to  work  amongst 
Europeans,  but  they  are  now  doing  missionary  work  as 
well. 

In  Upper  Burma  the  English  Wesleyan  Methodists 
have  been  at  work  since  1885.  They  help  to  support  a 
home  for  lepers  which  has  accommodation  for  250  lepers. 

The  Y.M.G.A.  has  a  large  organization  in  Eangoon,  but 
its  work  is  chiefly  amongst  Europeans. 

Anglican  Missions. 

At  the  close  of  the  second  Burmese  war  in  1853  the 
Anglican  chaplain  at  Moulmein,  supported  by  English 
civilians,  began  to  organize  missionary  work.  In  1854 
the  S.P.G.  sent  a  Eurasian  from  Calcutta  to  assist  him, 
and  in  1859  they  sent  the  Eev.  A.  Shears  from  England. 
In  1860,  Mr.  J.  E.  Marks  (now  Eev.  Dr.  Marks),  a  trained 
schoolmaster,  arrived,  who  enlarged  and  developed  the 
school  which  had  been  started.     In   1863  Mr.  Marks  was 


BURMA  155 

ordained  and  transferred  to  Eangoon,  where  he  started  a 
school  which  was  afterwards  known  as  St.  John's  College, 
which  stands  in  13  acres  of  land  and  has  now  nearly  700 
boys,  190  of  whom  are  boarders. 

In  1867  Mr.  Marks  visited  Mandalay  on  the  invitation 
of  the  king,  and  in  1869  he  opened  a  school  which  had 
been  built  at  the  king's  expense,  and  which  included 
amongst  its  scholars  nine  of  the  royal  princes.  The  king 
also  built  a  church,  to  which  Queen  Victoria  gave  a  font, 
and  which  was  consecrated  by  the  Bishop  of  Calcutta  in 
1873. 

In  1863  difficulties  arose  between  some  of  the  A.B.M. 
missionaries  amongst  the  Karens  and  their  converts,  and 
in  1870  the  wife  of  the  founder  of  the  Karen  Mission 
suggested  handing  over  to  the  Anglican  Church  6000 
converts  together  with  a  number  of  mission  schools  and 
other  property.  The  Eev.  J.  Trew,  whom  the  Bishop  of 
Calcutta  deputed  to  make  inquiries,  advised  that  the  offer 
should  be  refused  and  that  the  members  of  the  A.B.M. 
should  be  left  to  settle  the  dispute  among  themselves. 
In  1873  a  mission  station  for  work  amongst  Burmese 
was  opened  at  Toungoo.  In  1875,  the  dispute  among  the 
members  of  the  A.B.M.  still  continuing,  and  some  of  the 
Karen  Christians  having  drifted  back  into  heathenism, 
the  Anglican  Mission  at  Toungoo  undertook  the  care  of  the 
Karen  Christians  who  had  finally  separated  themselves 
from  the  A.B.M.  In  1877  the  bishopric  of  Eangoon  was 
constituted,  and  in  the  following  year  the  first  four  Karen 
clergy  were  ordained. 

On  the  succession  of  KingThibaw  in  1878,  the  mission 
at  Mandalay  was  broken  up,  and  the  church  was  converted 
into  a  state  lottery  office.  In  1885  the  mission  was 
re-started,  after  the  annexation  of  Upper  Burma  by  the 
English  Government,  by  the  Eev.  James  Colbeck,  a  most 
capable  missionary  and  a  man  of  saintly  character.  He 
died  in  1888,  after  fifteen  years  of  unbroken  service  in 
Burma.  In  1895  Dr.  Marks  was  compelled  to  return  to 
England  after  thirty-five  years  of  strenuous  work  in  the 


156  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

cause  of  Burmese  education.  On  the  resignation  of  Bishop 
Strachan,  after  an  episcopate  of  twenty  years,  the  Eev.  A. 
M.  Knight  was  consecrated  as  third  bishop  of  Eaugoon  in 
1903.  During  the  six  years  which  followed,  before  he 
was  forced  by  ill-health  to  resign,  he  did  much  to 
strengthen  and  develop  the  work  of  the  Anglican  missions, 
and  on  his  return  to  England  he  became  the  Warden  of 
St.  Augustine's  Missionary  College  at  Canterbury. 

A  Missionary  Brotherhood,  supported  by  funds  collected 
in  the  diocese  of  Winchester,  started  work  amongst  Burmese 
in  Mandalay  in  1904,  and  a  community  of  women  was 
organized  in  1909.  The  first  Head  of  the  Brotherhood 
was  the  Eev.  E.  S.  Fyffe,  who  became  Bishop  of  Eangoon 
in  1910. 

The  S.P.G.,  besides  supporting  work  amongst  the 
Burmese  and  Karens,  carries  on  work  amongst  Tamil, 
Telugu,  and  Chinese  immigrants  at  Eangoon,  Moulmein, 
Toungoo,  and  Mandalay,  and  has  a  small  mission  amongst 
the  Chins.  Connected  with  the  Anglican  Mission  there 
are  16  ordained  native  missionaries,  of  whom  10  are 
Karens,  3  Burmese,  and  3  Tamils. 

Its  most  important  institutions  are  St.  John's  College 
for  boys,  and  St.  Mary's  High  and  Normal  Schools  for  girls 
in  Eangoon.  It  has  also  some  work  at  Car  Nicobar,  one 
of  the  group  of  islands  south  of  the  Andamans,  which  are 
in  the  diocese  of  Eangoon.  The  total  number  of  baptized 
Christians  connected  with  the  Anglican  Mission  is  about 
10,000. 

Of  the  converts  in  Burma  connected  with  all  the 
Christian  missions,  by  far  the  largest  proportion  have  been 
won  from  amongst  animists  who  had  not  previously 
embraced  Buddhism.  But  although  the  profession  of 
Buddhism  renders  the  Burmese  difficult  for  the  Christian 
missionary  to  approach,  the  Burmese  are  far  from  being 
consistent  Buddhists. 

No  picture  could  be  more  ideal  than  that  of  Burmese 
Buddhism  depicted  in  the  book  entitled  The  Soul  of  a 
People,     We  are  loth  to  admit  the  truth,  which  is  that 


BURMA  157 

the  Buddhism  described  by  Mr.  Fielding  Hall  exists 
only  in  the  imagination  of  the  writer.  Over  against  the 
poetical,  but  wholly  misleading,  descriptions  of  Mr.  Hall 
we  have  to  set  the  matter-of-fact,  but  true,  description  by 
Mr.  C.  Lewis  in  the  official  Census  Eeport  for  India  and 
Burma.     He  speaks  of 

"  the  fact — now  largely  recognized — that  the  Buddhism 
of  the  people  is  of  the  lips  only,  and  that  inwardly 
in  their  hearts  the  bulk  of  them  are  still  swayed  by 
the  ingrained  tendencies  of  their  Shamanistic  forefathers — 
in  a  word,  are,  at  bottom,  animists  pure  and  simple.  .  .  . 
The  Burman  has  added  to  his  animism  just  so  much 
of  Buddhism  as  suits  him,  and  with  infantile  inconsequence 
draws  solace  from  each  of  them  in  turn.  I  know  of  no 
better  definition  of  the  religion  of  the  great  bulk  of  the 
people  of  the  province  than  that  given  by  Mr.  Eales  in 
his  1891  Census  Eeport:  'a  thin  veneer  of  philosophy  laid 
over  the  main  structure  of  Shamanistic  belief.'  The  facts 
are  here  exactly  expressed.  Animism  supplies  the  solid 
constituents  that  hold  the  faith  together,  Buddhism  the 
superficial  polish.  Far  be  it  from  me  to  underrate  the 
value  of  that  philosophic  veneer.  It  has  done  all  that  a 
polish  can  do  to  smooth,  to  beautify,  and  to  brighten ;  but 
to  the  end  of  time  it  will  never  be  more  than  a  polish.  In 
the  hour  of  great  heart-searching  it  is  profitless.  It  is  then 
that  the  Burman  falls  back  upon  his  primaeval  beliefs.  Let 
but  the  veneer  be  scratched,  the  Burman  stands  forth  an 
animist  confessed."  ^ 

A  more  hopeful  view  of  the  possible  developments 
of  Burmese  Buddhism  was  expressed  by  Dr.  Tilbe,  an 
American  missionary  working  in  Burma.  Speaking  at  a 
recent  Conference  in  America  of  the  change  which  has 
taken  place  during  recent  years  in  Burmese  Buddhism, 
he  said : 

"This  whole  country  of  Burma  is  absolutely  different  from 
what  it  was  not  so  very  long  ago.  The  people  are  different, 
the  religion  is  different.  Twenty-five  years  ago  the  term 
*  Buddhism '  meant  the  Buddhism  of  the  books,  the  Buddhism 
of  the  priesthood.     To-day,  Buddhism  is  still  a  religious  term, 

^  Census  Report,  1901,  vol.  i.  p.  35. 


158  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

but  the  thing  itself  is  vastly  different  from  what  it  was  twenty- 
five  years  ago.  At  that  time,  when  I  spoke  of  God,  I  had  to 
prove  the  existence  of  God  in  a  way  that  would  satisfy  those 
people.  When  I  spoke  then  of  man  having  a  soul,  almost 
every  man  in  my  congregation  denied  it.  To-day,  I  preach 
everywhere,  appealing  to  their  own  belief  in  God,  appeal- 
ing to  their  own  belief  in  the  human  soul :  and  I  find 
unanimous  assent.  Christian  teaching,  Christian  tracts, 
Christian  schools  have  modified  the  belief  in  Buddhism 
until  to-day  it  is  not  the  Buddhism  of  the  books,  not  the 
Buddhism  of  the  priesthood."  ^ 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  of  the  Burmese  converts 
to  Christianity  is  a  man  named  Maung  Tha  Dun,  who 
lived  in  the  forest  for  thirteen  years  the  life  of  a  Buddhist 
hermit.  Without  having  received  any  Christian  instruc- 
tion, or  having  come  into  contact  with  a  European 
missionary,  he  came  to  believe  that  much  of  the  teach- 
ing of  modern  Buddhism  was  false  and  that  there  was 
a  Supreme  God  who  could  be  thought  of  as  the  great 
Father,  and  he  began  to  preach  this  truth  in  the  sur- 
rounding villages.  He  at  length  came  into  contact  with 
the  Kev.  T.  Ellis,  an  Anglican  missionary  at  Kemmendine, 
and,  after  long  and  careful  preparation,  was  baptized  in 
1911.  Since  his  baptism  he  has  lived  the  life  of  an 
ascetic  and  has  occupied  his  time  partly  in  meditation  and 
partly  in  travelling  from  village  to  village  in  districts 
where  he  was  previously  known,  in  order  to  preach  the 
faith  of  Christ  to  his  former  disciples  and  followers.  Of 
these,  150  have  been  baptized  as  the  result  of  his  efforts, 
and  the  number  of  those  who  have  been  influenced  by 
him,  but  have  not  yet  been  baptized,  may  be  counted  by 
thousands.  Of  the  hermit  and  his  followers  the  Kev. 
G.  Whitehead  writes : 

"  I  am  more  and  more  struck  with  the  self-denying  life 
and  the  earnestness  of  the  hermit,  and  with  the  beauty 
of  character  reflected   in  the  face  of  him   and  of  quite  a 

*  Students  and  the  World-wide  Expansion  of  Christianity.     Report  of  a 
Conference  at  Kansas  City,  1914,  p.  270. 


BURMA  159 

number  of  his  followers.  The  hermit  himself  is  so  patient 
and  unselfish,  humble  and  pure  minded,  earnest  and  devout, 
full  of  benevolence  towards  all  men,  anxious  to  lead  his 
brethren  into  the  right  way,  and  unwearied  in  service,  that 
it  is  a  great  joy  to  be  with  him." 

In  the  discovery  and  the  conversion  of  men  like 
Maung  Tha  Dun  lies  the  hope  of  interpreting  Christ  to 
the  Burmese. 


VIL 

CHINA. 

The  story  of  Christian  Missions  in  China  may  be  con- 
sidered under  five  heads:  1.  The  influence  exerted  by 
Christian  teachers  upon  the  development  of  Chinese 
Buddhism,  prior  to  the  arrival  in  China  of  the  Nestorian 
missionaries.  2.  The  Nestorian  Missions  of  the  fifth  and 
following  centuries.  3.  The  Franciscan  Missions  in  the 
thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries.  4.  The  Jesuit  and 
other  Koman  Missions  from  the  sixteenth  to  the  end  of 
the  eighteenth  century.  5.  Modern  Missions  to  China 
from  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century. 


I.  The  influence  of  Christianity  on  Northern 
Buddhism. 

Any  inquiry  into  the  history  of  Christian  Missions 
in  China,  if  it  is  to  take  account  of  the  conditions  under 
which  these  missions  have  been  carried  on,  must  include 
a  reference  to  the  influence  which  Christian  teaching 
may  have  exerted  in  China  before  the  Christian  faith  was 
definitely  preached  there.  Northern  Buddhism,  that  is, 
roughly  speaking,  the  Buddhism  of  China  and  Japan, 
differs  so  fundamentally  from  the  southern  Buddhism, 
which  is  now  represented  in  Ceylon  and  Burma,  that 
only  by  a  stretch  of  language  can  the  two  be  called 
one  religion.  The  differences  that  exist  between  them 
are  more  fundamental  than  those  that  exist  between 
Christianity  and  Islam.     How  then  was  Indian  Buddhism 

i6o 


CHINA  161 

transformed,  and  under  what  influences  ?  One  answer 
appears  to  be  that  northern  Buddhism  was  indebted  for 
part  of  its  distinctive  teaching  first  to  Gnostic  teachers  of 
the  first  and  second  centuries,  and,  later  on,  to  the  teaching 
of  Manicheism. 

Before  we  attempt  to  suggest  how  this  debt  may  have 
been  incurred,  it  is  well  to  recall  the  essential  difference 
between  northern  and  southern  Buddhism.  The  latter, 
as  represented  in  Ceylon,  Burma  (and  apparently  in  Tibet), 
knows  nothing  of  a  personal  God,  or  of  salvation  to  be 
gained  as  a  gift  from  God  or  as  the  result  of  faith 
in  Him.  It  teaches  that  without  expecting  to  receive 
divine,  or  external,  help  man  should  aim  at  securing 
salvation  by  accumulating  merit.  The  salvation  which, 
after  countless  rebirths  on  this  earth,  he  may  hope  to 
secure  will  result  in  his  individual  life  and  consciousness 
being  merged  in  universal  life  and,  in  so  far  as  the  ex- 
pression has  a  definite  meaning,  in  universal  conscious- 
ness. 

If  by  northern  Buddhism  we  mean  the  Buddhism 
embodied  in  The  Aivakening  of  Faith  and  The  Lotus 
Scripture^  which  are  accepted  by  Chinese  Buddhists,  and 
the  Buddhism  of  the  Amida  sects  and  the  Pure  Land 
School  in  Japan,  we  may  claim  for  northern  Buddhism  a 
belief  in  a  personal  God  who  is  moved  with  love  towards 
men,  and  in  a  salvation  which  includes  personal  immortality 
to  be  won  not  by  the  accumulation  of  merit  but  by  faith 
in  God. 

The  teaching  of  the  Amida  sects  and  the  Pure  Land 
School,  which  include  more  than  half  the  population  of 
Japan,  go  far  beyond  this. 

^  The  Awakening  of  Faith,  the  Chinese  translation  of  which  was  made 
by  the  Buddhist  missionary  Paramartha  during  the  first  half  of  the  sixth 
century,  and  which  is  about  the  size  of  the  Gospel  of  St.  Mark,  is  said  to 
rank  fifth  amongst  the  religious  books  of  the  world  which  have  the  largest 
number  of  adherents,  i.e.  after  the  Bible,  the  Koran,  the  Confucian  Classics 
and  the  Vedas.  The  Lotus  Scripture,  which  is  the  most  popular  of  all  the 
Buddhist  scriptures  in  Japan,  existed  before  a.d.  250,  and  was  translated 
into  Chinese  about  the  end  of  the  third  century'. 
II 


162  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

According  to  the  doctrine  accepted  by  the  Amida  and 
Pure  Land  sects,  "  Amida  is  without  beginning  and  without 
end :  all  love,  wisdom,  benevolence  and  power.  In  ages 
incalculably  remote  he  appeared  in  various  forms  among 
men,  all  his  incarnations  being  to  bring  salvation  to  man- 
kind. In  his  last  incarnation  he  registered  a  vow  that, 
should  the  perfect  consummation  of  the  Buddhahood  ever 
be  in  his  power,  he  would  not  accept  deliverance  unless 
such  deliverance  should  also  mean  the  salvation  of  man- 
kind. ...  To  grasp  the  salvation  wrought  out  for  man  by 
Amida  .  .  .  nothing  is  needed  but  faith — no  works  of  the 
law,  no  austerities,  penances,  no  repentance,  nothing  but 
faith."  1 

Whilst  it  is  impossible  to  maintain  that  this  teaching, 
or  the  teaching  of  those  Buddhists  in  China  to  whom 
reference  has  been  made,  is  a  natural  development  of  the 
teaching  of  southern  Buddhism,  it  is  hard  to  suggest 
any  source  from  which  the  distinctive  doctrines  of  this 
form  of  Buddhism  could  have  been  derived  other  than 
Christianity  or  the  early  heretical  sects  which  had  accepted 
part  of  the  Christian  faith.  The  two  sects  which  were  in 
touch  with  Christian  thought,  and  which  might  have 
exerted  influence  upon  Buddhist  teachers  in  very  early 
times,  are  the  Gnostics  and  the  Manichees.  A  book  en- 
titled Fistis  Sophia,  which  is  a  Gnostic  Gospel  and  pro- 
fesses to  give  in  the  words  of  Jesus  an  exposition  of  the 
chief  doctrines  of  Gnosticism,  was  discovered  by  Schwartze 
in  1851  among  the  Coptic  MSS.  contained  in  the  British 
Museum.  The  original,  which  was  apparently  written  in 
Greek,  dates  from  the  second  century  and  may  have  been 
written  by  Valentinus.  The  resemblances  which  can  be 
traced  between  the  teaching  of  the  Fistis  Sophia  and  that 
of  the  Amida  sects  of  Japan  are  so  striking  as  to  make  it 
difficult  to  doubt  that  Egyptian  Gnosticism  either  influenced, 
or  was  influenced  by.  Buddhism.  The  latter  alternative 
is  apparently  quite  inadmissible.  Professor  Lloyd  has 
shown  that  it  is  far  from  being  impossible  that  Gnostic 

^  The  Creed  of  Half  Japan,  by  Arthur  Lloyd,  pp.  266-8. 


CHINA  163 

teaching  may  have  reached  Japan  via  Southern  India  at  a 
very  early  date.^ 

We  cannot  give  even  a  summary  of  the  evidence  which 
Professor  Lloyd  and  others  have  adduced  in  proof  of  the 
theory  that  Chinese  Buddhism  was  influenced  by  Chris- 
tianity, represented  in  a  distorted  form  by  early  Gnostic  and 
Manichee  teachers,  but  no  careful  student  can  lightly 
disregard  such  evidence. 

An  interesting  discovery  was  made  in  China  in  1908 
which  tends  to  support  the  theory  that  Manicheism 
exerted  a  widespread  influence  in  China  in  very  early  times. 
In  1908  there  was  found  in  a  cave  in  Tunhuang  in  the 
province  of  Kansu,  a  large  number  of  MSS.  which  have 
been  in  part  deciphered  by  MM.  Chavannes  and  Pelliot.^ 
The  cave  had  been  sealed  up  for  many  centuries  (from 
1035  A.D.).  One  of  the  MSS.  is  a  Chinese  translation 
of  two  short  Manichean  treatises.^  The  discovery  of 
this  book  affords  evidence  that  Manichean  teaching  was 
represented  in  China  in  or  about  the  eighth  century.* 
Another  MS.  found  in  the  same  cave  consists  of  a 
hymn  addressed  to  the  Holy  Trinity  entitled  "  A  hymn 
by  which  to  obtain  salvation  to  the  Three  majestic  Ones  of 
the  Illustrious  Religion."  The  hymn  consists  of  309  words 
divided  into  eleven  stanzas  of  four  lines  each,  and  includes  a 
list  of  persons  and  books  venerated  by  Christians.  This 
recent  discovery  confirms  and  supplements  the  information 
supplied  by  the  famous  stone  discovered  at  Hsianfu,  to 
which  we  shall  have  occasion  to  refer. 

^  See  "Gnosticism  and  Early  Christianity  in  Egypt,"  by  P.  I.  Scott- 
Moncrieff,  Church  Quarterly  Review,  October  1909  ;  "Gnosticism  in  Japan," 
by  A.  Lloyd,  in  The  East  and  The  West,  April  1910  ;  and  The  New  Testament 
of  Higher  Biiddhism,  by  Timothy  Richard. 

2  Cf.  Un  traiti  manicheen  retrouve  en  Chine,  traduit  et  annote  par 
Chavannes  et  Pelliot,  Paris,  1912  ;  ef.  also  "An  Ancient  Chinese  Christian 
Document,"  in  the  Church  Missionary  Review  for  October  1912,  by  A.  C. 
Moule, 

^  The  actual  title  of  the  Chinese  MS.  is  missing. 

*  In  A.D.  981  the  Chinese  traveller  "Wang  Yente  spoke  of  the  existence 
of  Manichean  temples  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Tourfan. 


164  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 


II.  The  Nestorian  Mission. 

There  is  no  certain  proof  that  a  mission  connected 
with  any  branch  of  the  Christian  Church  reached  China 
prior  to  the  arrival  of  the  Nestorian  missionaries. 

It  is  true  that  a  fourteenth-century  tradition  mentioned 
by  Nicholas  Trigault  (1615)  states  that  St.  Thomas,  after 
preaching  the  gospel  in  South  India,  preached  and  founded 
Christian  churches  in  China,  but  the  tradition  has  no 
historic  value.  The  earliest  reference  of  any  value  to  the 
existence  of  Christianity  in  China  is  that  of  Arnobius,  who 
wrote  about  A.D.  300.  He  says  :  "  The  work  done  in  India, 
among  the  Seres,  Persians  and  Medes  may  be  counted  and 
come  in  for  the  purpose  of  reckoning."^ 

If  by  Seres  we  are  to  understand  Chinese,  the  state- 
ment would  show  that  Arnobius  believed  that  Christian 
missionary  work  amongst  Chinese  was  in  existence 
there  at  the  time  when  he  wrote.  It  is  difficult  to  say 
what  value  can  be  attached  to  this  statement.  We  are  on 
surer  ground  when  we  come  to  speak  of  the  Nestorian 
Mission. 

At  the  Council  of  Ephesus  held  in  a.d.  431,  Nestorius, 
who  was  then  Patriarch  of  Constantinople,  was  condemned 
as  a  heretic  and  banished  beyond  the  frontiers  of  the 
Eoman  Empire.  His  banishment,  which  was  apparently  the 
result  of  a  serious  misunderstanding  of  his  teaching,  was  the 
immediate  cause  of  a  great  extension  of  Christian  Missions 
throughout  the  Far  East.  A  school  was  founded  at  Edessa 
(the  modern  Ourfa)  which  became  a  centre  for  missionary 
expansion,  and  owing  to  the  activity  of  the  followers  of 
Nestorius  the  Christian  faith  was  spread  over  a  great  part 
of  Central  Asia. 

Many  archbishoprics  or  metropolitical  sees  were  eventu- 

1  Adversus  Gentes,  Leyden,  1651,  lib.  ii.  p.  50,  quoted  in  the  Book  of 
Governors,  i.  p.  115,  note  2.  The  Book  of  Governors  is  the  Historia 
Monastica  oiThoma.^,  Bishop  of  Marga,  written  in  Syriac,  c.  840,  printed  with 
English  translation  and  notes  by  Dr.  Budge,  1893.  Bishop  Thomas  was 
secretary  to  Mar  Abraham,  the  Patriarch,  between  832  and  840. 


CHINA  165 

ally  established,  of  which  two  were  at  Cabul  and  Cambaluc 
(Peking).  Other  metropolitical  sees  were  at  Elam,  Nisibis, 
Bethgerma,  and  Carach  in  Persia ;  at  Halavan  or  Halach 
on  the  confines  of  Media ;  at  Mara  in  Korassan ;  at  Hara 
in  Camboya ;  at  Dailen,  Samarcand,  and  Maravalnabar ; 
and  at  Tanket  or  Tangut — the  modern  province  of  Kansu.^ 
The  canon  of  Theodore,  Bishop  of  Edessa  in  800  A.D., 
refers  to  "  Metropolitans  of  China,  India,  and  Persia,  of 
the  Merozites  of  Siam,  of  the  Eaziches,  of  the  Harinos,  of 
Samarcand,  which  are  distant,  and  which  by  reason  of  the 
infested  mountains  and  turbulent  sea  are  prevented  from 
attending  the  four-yearly  convocations  with  the  catholicos, 
and  who  therefore  are  to  send  their  reports  every  six 
years."  * 

Our  chief  source  of  information  in  regard  to  the  work 
of  this  mission  is  the  famous  Nestorian  Stone  which  was 
inscribed  at  Hsianfu  in  the  eighth  century,  and  was 
buried  during  the  great  persecution  of  a.d.  845,  to  be 
rediscovered  by  Chinese  workmen  in  1625,  and  roofed 
over  by  a  patriotic  Chinese  in  1859.  The  inscription 
refers  to  the  work  accomplished  by  one  or  more  Syrian 
monks  who  arrived  at  Hsianfu  in  a.d.  635.  It  throws  so 
much  interesting  light  upon  the  work  of  the  Nestorian 
missionaries  that  it  is  worth  while  to  describe  it  in  some 
detail.  The  inscription  is  in  Chinese,  the  names  of  the 
clergy  being  given  for  the  most  part  in  Chinese  and  Syriac. 
The  inscription,  which  is  entitled,  "  Monument  commemor- 
ating the  propagation  of  the  noble  law  of  Tach'in  (the 
Eoman  Empire)  in  the  Middle  Kingdom,"  states :  It  is 
handed  down  by  Chingching,  priest  of  the  Tach'in 
monastery  (called  in  Syriac  Adam,  Priest  and  Chorepiscopos 
and  Papas  of  China),  that  there  is  one  Alaha,  Three  in 
One,  the  unoriginated  true  Lord.  Then  follows  the  story 
of  creation,  an  account  of  Man,  of  Satan,  and  the  rise  of 

^  See  Assemani,  Bihliotheca  Orientalis,  vol.  iii.  This  is  a  collection  of 
Syriac  and  other  MSS.  published  in  Rome,  1719-28.  The  complete  list  of 
Nestorian  dioceses  given  by  Assemani  (vol.  iii.  pt.  ii.)  occupies  eighty 
folio  pages. 

2  Quoted  in  The  Greek  and  Eastern  Churches,  by  W.  F.  Adeney,  p.  534  f. 


166  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

idolatry.  The  Triune  Alaha  divided  His  Godhead,  and 
Messiah  appeared.  Angels  proclaimed  Him ;  a  Virgin 
bore  Him  in  Tach'in ;  a  bright  star  announced  His  birth  ; 
Persians  visited  Him.  He  left  twenty-seven  books  of  a 
New  Testament,  and  baptism.  His  ministers  turn  to  the 
east  at  prayer  and  wear  beards  as  a  sign  that  they 
maintain  outward  relationships,  shaving  their  crowns. 
They  pray  for  the  living  and  the  dead ;  they  have  the 
weekly  offering ;  they  have  no  slaves,  no  wealth,  but  they 
promote  harmony.  In  the  days  of  T'ai  Tsung  (627-650), 
Alopen  brought  the  Scriptures  and  translated  them  into 
Chinese.  He  built  a  monastery  for  twenty-one  monks. 
Eeligion  spread  through  ten  provinces  (650-683). 
Monasteries  filled  a  hundred  cities  (698-699).  But 
Buddhists  derided  it.  The  Emperor  Tai  Tsung  (763-780) 
every  year  on  the  day  of  the  Nativity  presented  divine 
incense  to  proclaim  the  perfected  work,  and  offered  a  royal 
feast  to  do  honour  to  the  Christian  congregation.  Chien- 
chung  (780-784)  helps  us.  Priest  Issu  restored  the  old 
monasteries  and  doubled  the  size  of  the  churches.  Erected 
(781)  in  the  days  of  Henan  Ishu,  the  Catholicos  (oh. 
780),  by  Jazedbouzid,  Priest  and  Chorepiscopos  of  Kumdan 
(Hsian)  by  the  disposition  of  our  Saviour,  and  preaching 
of  our  fathers  to  the  Kings  of  the  Chinese. 

Then  follow  names,  Lingpao,  Adam,  Hsingt'ung, 
Sabranishu,  etc.,  of  Kumdan  and  Sarag  (China).^ 

As  suggestive  of  the  possible  influence  exerted  upon 
the  development  of  Chinese  Buddhism,  we  may  note  that 
Chingching,  the  author  of  this  inscription,  helped  an 
Indian  Buddhist  missionary  to  translate  a  Buddhist  sutra 
into  Chinese. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  references  to  the 
Nestorian  Mission  contained  in  the  Christian  MS.  found 
in  the  cave  at  Tunhuang.  The  following  references,  which 
occur  in  the  writings  of  contemporary  Chinese  writers,  are 
deserving  of  special  notice  : — 

^  A  nibbing  of  the  stone,  the  lettering  of  which  is  easily  decipherable, 
can  be  seen  at  the  S.P.G.  Mission  House,  Westminster. 


CHINA  167 

"  Allusions  to  the  Nestorian  Mission  in  Chinese  Writings. 
—  In  the  seventh  month  (August  15  to  September  12) 
of  the  twelfth  of  the  Chengkuan  years  (a.d.  638)  a  decree 
was  made  saying :  Teaching  has  no  immutable  name,  holy 
men  have  no  unchanging  method.  Religions  are  founded 
to  suit  (respectively,  different)  lands,  that  aU  the  masses 
of  men  may  be  saved.  Alopen,  a  Persian  monk,  bringing 
the  religion  of  the  Scriptures  from  far,  has  come  to  offer  it 
at  the  chief  metropolis.  The  meaning  of  his  religion  has 
been  carefully  examined :  it  is  mysterious,  wonderful, 
calm;  it  fixes  the  essentials  of  life  and  perfection;  it  is 
the  salvation  of  living  beings,  it  is  the  wealth  of  men. 
It  is  right  that  it  should  spread  through  the  Empire. 
Therefore  let  the  ministers  build  a  monastery  in  the 
Ining  quarter,  and  let  tw^enty-one  men  be  duly  admitted 
as  monks.^ 

"In  the  ninth  month  (September  30  to  October  29) 
of  the  fourth  of  the  T'ienpao  years  (a.d.  745)  a  decree  was 
made  saying :  It  is  long  since  (the  teachers  of)  the  religion 
of  the  Scriptures  of  Persia,  starting  from  Syria,  coming  to 
preach  and  practise,  spread  through  the  Middle  Kingdom. 
When  they  first  built  monasteries  we  gave  them  in  conse- 
quence (of  their  supposed  origin)  the  name  (of  Persian). 
In  order  that  men  may  know  their  (real)  origin,  the 
Monasteries  of  Persia  at  the  two  capitals  are  to  be  changed 
to  Monasteries  of  Syria.  Let  those  (monasteries)  also  which 
are  established  in  all  the  Prefectures  and  Districts  observe 
this."  2 

The  next  decree  suggests  alike  the  widespread  influence 
of  the  Nestorian  Mission  and  the  development  of  official 
government  opposition  to  its  claims : 

"  As  to  the  monks  and  nuns  who  come  under  the  head 
of  aliens,  making  known  the  religions  of  other  countries, 
we  decree  that  over  3000  Syrians  and  Muhufu  return  to 
lay  life  and  cease  to  confound  our  native  customs."  ^ 

1  Tang  hui  yao  (ed.  1884,  first  published  a.d.  960),  xlix.  fol.  10. 
Chinese  text  in  VarUUs  Sinologiques,  No.  12,  p.  376. 

2  T'ang  hui  yao,  xlix.  fol.  10,  11  ;  Hsihsita'ung,  vii.  fol.  22.  Text  in 
VarieUs  Sinologiques,  No.  12,  p.  376  ;  translation,  p.  255.  There  seem  to 
have  been  "Persian  "if  not  "Syrian"  monasteries  of  other  creeds  besides 
the  Christian. 

'  VariU6s  Sinologiques,  No.  12,  p.  378.  The  words  come  in  a  decree 
dated  a.d.  845. 


168  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

"When  Wu  Tsung  (a.d.  840-846)  was  on  the  throne, 
he  suppressed  the  Buddhist  religion,  destroying  in  the 
Empire  4600  monasteries  and  40,000  lesser  establishments. 
Monks  and  nuns  to  the  number  of  265,000  were  enrolled 
as  ordinary  subjects,  with  their  slaves,  150,000 ;  and  many 
thousand  myriad  cKing  of  land  were  confiscated;  Syrians 
(Tach'in)  and  Muhuyao  over  two  thousand.  In  the  chief 
metropolis  and  the  eastern  metropolis  two  monasteries 
were  left  in  each  main  street,  with  thirty  monks  in  each 
monastery.  In  the  provinces,  monks  were  left  in  (monas- 
teries of)  three  grades,  with  a  limit  of  twenty  men  (in  the 
largest  houses).  .  .  ."  ^ 

"Long  ago  some  foreigners  built  a  monastery  here 
(Chengtu)  for  a  Syrian  monastery.  The  ten  divisions  of 
the  gate-tower  all  had  blinds  made  of  strings  of  pearls  and 
blue  jade.  Later  it  was  destroyed  and  fell  to  the  ground. 
To  this  day  the  foundations  remain,  and  every  time  there 
is  heavy  rain,  people  (living)  behind  and  in  front  (of  the 
site)  pick  up  quantities  of  pearls,  sMsM^  gold,  blue  jade  and 
different  things."  ^ 

"  Among  the  different  foreigners  who  have  come  there 
are  the  Moni  (Manichees),  the  Tach'in  (Nestorians)  and  the 
Hsienshen  (Zoroastrians).  All  the  monasteries  of  these 
three  (sorts  of)  foreigners  in  the  Empire  are  not  enough  to 
equal  the  number  of  the  Buddhists  in  one  small  district."  ^ 

Of  the  subsequent  development  of  the  Nestorian 
Mission  in  China  hardly  anything  is  known. 

Abou'l  Faradj,  writing  in  a.d.  987,  speaks  of  having 
met  a  Christian  who  had  travelled  extensively  in  China, 
and  who  declared  that  there  was  not  a  Christian  then  left 
in  the  country  and  that  the  Church  buildings  had  been 
destroyed.* 

Apart  from  references  to  the  existence  of  Syrian 
monasteries  at  Hsian  in  1076  and  at  Chengtu  at  about 
the  same  date,  Chinese  contemporary  writers  make  hardly 
a  single  allusion   to   Christianity   between    the   decree  of 

*  VarUtis  Sinologiques,  No.  12,  p.  376  f. 

2  Chinese  work  quoted  by  A.  C.  Moule,  to  whom  it  was  communicated 
by  P.  Pelliot. 

'  VariiUs  Sinologiques^  No.  12,  p.  394. 

*  See  Les  Influences  Iraniennes  en  Asie  centrale  et  en  extreme-orient,  par 
Paul  Pelliot,  Paris,  1912,  p.  15. 


CHINA 


169 


845  and  the  comiDg  of  the  Franciscan  Mission  in  the 
thirteenth  century.  The  following  is  a  quotation  from 
CatJmy  and  the  Way  Thither,  translated  from  a  book  written 
in  the  fourteenth  century  : — 

"  Concerning  the  Schismatics  or  Nestorian  Christians  who 
dwell  in  that  country.— In  the  said  city  of  Cambaluc 
there  is  a  manner  of  schismatic  Christians  whom  they 
call  Nestorians.  They  follow  the  manner  and  fashion  of 
the  Greeks,  and  are  not  obedient  to  the  Holy  Church  of 
Eome,  but  follow  another  sect,  and  bear  great  hate  to 
all  Catholic  Christians  there  who  do  loyally  obey  the  holy 
Church  aforesaid.  And  when  the  Archbishop  of  whom 
we  have  been  speaking  was  building  those  Abbeys  of  the 
Minor  Friars  aforesaid,  these  Nestorians  by  night  went 
to  destroy  them,  and  did  all  the  hurt  that  they  were  able. 
But  they  dared  not  do  any  evil  to  the  said  Archbishop, 
nor  to  his  friars,  nor  to  other  faithful  Christians  in  public 
or  openly,  for  that  the  Emperor  did  love  these  and  showed 
them  tokens  of  his  regard. 

"These  Nestorians  are  more  than  30,000,  dwelling  in 
the  said  Empire  of  Cathay,  and  are  passing  rich  people, 
but  stand  in  great  fear  and  awe  of  the  Christians.  They 
have  very  handsome  and  devoutly  ordered  churches,  with 
crosses  and  images  in  honour  of  God  and  the  saints.  They 
hold  sundry  offices  under  the  said  Emperor,  and  have 
great  privileges  from  him;  so  that  it  is  believed  that  if 
they  would  agree  and  be  at  one  with  the  Minor  Friars 
and  with  the  other  good  Christians  who  dwell  in  that 
country,  they  would  convert  the  whole  country  and  the 
Emperor  likewise  to  the  true  faith."  ^ 

In  1725,  what  is  supposed  to  be  a  relic  of  the 
Nestorian  Christianity  in  China  was  discovered  in  the 
shape  of  a  Syrian  MS.  which  contained  a  large  portion 
of  the  Old  Testament  and  a  collection  of  hymns.  These 
were  in  the  possession  of  a  Chinese  Mohammedan. 

1  Cathay  and  the  Way  Thither,  vol.  i.  p.  238.  The  Latin  original  ia 
not  extant.  The  French  version  is  found  in  the  Bibliotheque  Rationale  at 
Paris,  MSS.  7500  and  8392,  and  was  printed  in  the  Journal  Asiatique,  vi. 
pp.  57-72.  Cf.  Cathay,  vol.  i.  pp.  189-190.  Yule  gives  the  original  date 
as  circa  1330.  The  author  was  John  of  Cora,  who  had  served  under  John 
of  Monte  Corvino  and  was  made  Archbishop  of  Sultania  in  Persia  in  1328. 
Cf.  i^iicy.  Brit.,  1910,  vol.  vi.  p.  190. 


170  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 


III.  The  Franciscan  Missions. 

At  the  Council  of  Lyons  which  was  held  in  1245, 
Pope  Innocent  iv.  appealed  for  a  spiritual  army  which 
should  be  the  means  of  converting  the  Mongols  to  Christ. 
In  response  to  his  appeal  three  Franciscan  friars  started 
on  April  16,  1245,  and  succeeded  in  penetrating  to  the 
heart  of  the  Mongol  territory,  but  failed  to  reach  China. 
A  second  attempt  made  a  little  later  met  with  still  less 
success.  In  1271,  Nicolo  Polo  and  his  more  famous  son 
Marco  visited  the  Great  Khan,  and  after  his  return  in 
1295  Marco  Polo  dictated  the  well-known  story  of  his  travels 
in  the  Far  East.  Meanwhile,  in  1289,  Pope  Nicolas  iv. 
sent  forth  John  of  Monte  Corvino  with  letters  addressed 
to  Kublai,  the  ruler  of  Cambaluc  ^  (Peking),  who  after 
many  adventures  in  Persia  and  India  reached  Cambaluc 
in  1294.  On  his  arrival  he  found  the  Nestorian  Mission 
strongly  established  and  bitterly  opposed  to  his  Mission. 
Thus  he  writes  on  January  8,  1305  : 

"  The  Nestorians,  certain  folk  who  profess  the  name 
of  Christians  but  who  deviate  sadly  from  the  Christian 
religion,  have  grown  so  powerful  in  those  parts  that  they 
will  not  allow  a  Christian  of  another  rite  to  have  ever 
so  small  a  chapel,  or  to  proclaim  any  but  the  Nestorian 
doctrine." 

A  further  extract  from  this  letter  will  give  in  the 
fewest  words  an  idea  of  the  work  accomplished  by  Friar 
John  during  the  twelve  years  which  followed  his  arrival  in 
China : 

"I,  indeed,  was  alone  in  this  pilgrimage  and  without 
confession  for  eleven  years,  until  there  came  to  me  brother 
Arnold,  a  German  of  the  province  of  Cologne,  who 
came  to  me  last  year.  In  the  city  of  Khanbalig,  where 
the  king's  chief  residence  is,  I  have  built  a  church,  which 
I  completed  six  years  ago,  and  I  have  built  a  campanile 
to  it,  in  which  I  have  put  three  bells.     I  have  baptized 

*  Cambaluc  does  not  appear  to  have  become  the  capital  of  Northern 
China  before  the  tenth  century  a.d. 


CHINA  171 

there  up  to  this  time  as  well  as  I  can  estimate  about  six 
thousand  persons,  and  if  there  had  not  been  those  charges 
of  which  I  have  spoken  above,  I  should  have  baptized  more 
than  thirty  thousand;  and  I  am  still  often  engaged  in 
baptizing. 

"  Also  I  have  gradually  bought  forty  boys,  the  children 
of  pagan  parents,  between  the  age  of  seven  and  eleven, 
who  up  to  that  time  had  known  no  religion.  These 
boys  I  have  baptized,  and  have  taught  them  Latin 
letters  and  our  rite,  and  have  written  out  thirty  psalters 
for  them,  with  hymnaries  and  two  breviaries,  by  means 
of  which  eleven  of  the  boys  already  know  our  Office, 
and  form  a  choir  and  take  their  weekly  turn  of  duty 
as  is  done  in  convents,  whether  I  am  there  or  not;  and 
several  of  them  are  writing  out  the  psalter  and  other 
necessary  books;  and  the  Lord  Emperor  delights  much  in 
their  singing.  I  have  the  bells  rung  for  all  the  hours,  and 
with  my  congregation  of  babes  and  sucklings  I  fulfil  the 
Divine  Office,  and  we  sing  by  ear  because  we  have  no  Office 
book  with  the  music.  I  have  a  competent  knowledge  of  the 
language  and  character  which  is  generally  used  by  the 
Tartars ;  and  I  have  already  translated  into  that  language 
and  character  the  whole  New  Testament  and  the  Psalter, 
which  I  have  caused  to  be  written  out  in  their  most  beauti- 
ful script.  I  understand  the  language  and  read  and  preach, 
openly  and  publicly,  in  testimony  of  the  Law  of  Christ."  ^ 

On  receiving  the  news  contained  in  this  letter  Pope 
Clement  v.  nominated  John  of  Monte  Corvino  as  Arch- 
bishop of  Cambaluc  and  Primate  of  the  Far  East,  and 
dispatched  seven  friars  whom  he  had  consecrated  as  bishops 
with  orders  to  consecrate  Friar  John  as  Archbishop.  Appar- 
ently four  of  these  bishops  died  before  reaching  China.  The 
other  three  arrived  and  performed  the  act  of  consecration  in 
1308.  After  this  we  have  very  little  information  in  regard 
to  the  work  of  the  Franciscan  Mission.  Archbishop  John 
died  soon  after  1328  and  his  place  was  left  unfilled  for 
many  years  despite  the  dispatch  of  a  message  from  the  Great 
Khan  himself,  begging  that  more  teachers  might  be  sent. 

*The  original  of  this  Latin  letter  is  given  in  Annales  Minorum,  ed. 
Fonseca,  vol.  vi.  p.  69,  and  in  the  Journal  of  the  Royal  Asiatic  Society,  July 
1914.     For  an  English  translation  see  The  East  and  The  West,  April  1904. 


172  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Mr.  Marshall  Broomhall  writes : 

"  One  of  the  grandest  opportunities  that  the  Church  of 
Christ  has  ever  had  presented  to  it  is  connected  with  the 
lifetime  of  Kublai  Khan.  There  are  letters  still  extant, 
preserved  in  the  French  archives,  relating  the  remarkable 
fact  that  Kublai  Khan  actually  requested  the  Pope  to  send 
one  hundred  missionaries  to  his  country,  *  to  prove  by  force 
of  argument  to  idolaters  and  other  kinds  of  folk  that  the 
law  of  Christ  was  best,  and  that  all  other  religions  were 
false  and  naught ;  and  that  if  they  would  prove  this,  he  and 
all  under  him  would  become  Christians  and  the  Church's 
liegemen.' 

" '  What  might  have  been '  is  a  question  that  cannot  but 
rise  in  the  hearts  of  those  who  read  this  extract.  The  death 
of  the  Pope,  however,  and  faction  among  the  cardinals,  with 
the  subsequent  failure  of  the  two  missionaries  sent — they 
turned  back  because  of  the  hardships  of  the  way — lost  to 
Asia  an  opportunity  such  as  the  Church  has  seldom 
had."i 

The  last  authentic  reference  to  the  mission  mentions 
the  sending  of  a  mission  by  Pope  Urban  v.  in  1370,  but  it 
is  doubtful  whether  any  of  its  members  reached  China. 
Meanwhile  the  tolerant  Tartar  dynasty  had  given  place  to 
the  intolerant  and  persecuting  Ming  dynasty.  James  of 
Florence,  fifth  bishop  of  Zaitun,  a  city  on  the  coast  three 
weeks'  journey  from  Peking,  was  martyred,  together 
with  certain  of  his  fellow  Christians,  in  1362,  and  his 
martyrdom  is  the  last  fact  which  we  know  concerning 
the  Franciscan  missions  in  China.  If  the  representation 
of  Odoric  on  his  tomb  in  the  cathedral  at  Udine  is  true 
to  life,  it  would  appear  that  the  Franciscan  missionaries 
were  accustomed  to  wear  the  dress  of  the  people  amongst 
whom  they  worked  and  to  shave  their  heads  in  the  Tartar 
fashion. 

^  The  Chinese  Empire,  p.  8.  The  quotation  made  by  Mr.  Broomhall  is 
from  a  summary  of  a  letter  given  by  Marco  Polo,  but  Dr.  George  Smith, 
who  is  his  authority  for  the  statement  quoted  above  (cf.  The  Conversion  of 
India,  p.  35),  was  mistaken  in  supposing  that  the  letters  in  the  French 
archives  referred  to  the  request  made  by  Kublai  Khan,  see  The  Book  of 
Ser  Marco  Polo  (1903),  i.  p.  13. 


CHINA  173 

Before  going  on  to  refer  to  the  establishment  of  the 
Jesuit  missions  in  China  it  may  be  well  to  say  a  few 
words  with  regard  to  the  failure  of  the  Nestorian  and 
Franciscan  missions  to  leave  any  permanent  traces  of 
work  which  was  carried  on  for  so  long  a  period  and  with 
so  many  outward  signs  of  success.  Three  special  reasons 
may  be  suggested  to  account  for  the  eventual  failure  of 
these  missions. 

1.  In  neither  case  was  any  serious  attempt  made  to 
establish  the  missions  on  a  democratic  basis.  After  they 
had  been  dispatched  from  their  home  base,  no  financial 
help  was  sent  to  them,  and  they  were  therefore  compelled 
to  be  self-supporting.  In  order  to  fulfil  this  requirement 
it  was  considered  to  be  necessary  that  they  should  obtain 
support  from  the  rulers  of  the  countries  to  which  they 
went.  "  They  did  not  labour  with  their  own  hands,  nor 
receive  support  as  a  rule  from  their  converts,  as  far  as  we 
know.  They  went  with  letters  of  recommendation  from 
the  Pope  (or  some  other  potentate),  and  received  support 
from  the  Emperor  as  forming  part  of  his  retinue  in  some 
vague  sense,  or  as  the  representatives  of  a  friendly  foreign 
Power.  This  applies  at  least  to  the  early  Nestorians 
(635-845)  in  part  and  to  the  Franciscan  Mission  (1294- 
1350).  The  later  Nestorians  did  engage  in  trade  and 
agriculture,  and  there  are  Imperial  decrees  extant  which 
refuse  exemption  from  taxes  to  Christian  monks  who  were 
so  engaged."^ 

2.  A  second  reason  that  may  be  assigned  for  the 
disappearance  of  the  later  Nestorian  and  Franciscan 
converts  is  to  be  found  in  their  connection  with  the  ruling 
dynasty,  the  overthrow  of  which  involved  the  overthrow 
and  persecution  of  the  Christians.  The  Christians  came 
to  be  regarded  as  foreigners  and  lost  all  power  of  influenc- 
ing those  who  were  not  already  Christians. 

3.  A  third  reason  is  the  failure  on  the  part  of  either 
mission  to  train  an  effective  body  of  Chinese  clergy.  For 
the  early  Nestorian  Period  (635-845)  there  is  no  evidence 

1  A.  C.  Moule,  The  East  and  The  fFest,  October  1914. 


174  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

to  show  whether  the  Nestorian  missionaries  included  any 
Chinese  priest,  though  it  is  at  least  possible  that  some  of 
the  seventy  names  on  the  Hsian  monument  are  those  of 
Chinese  clergy.  In  the  accounts  of  the  later  Nestorians, 
though  there  is  no  mention  of  the  ordination  of  Chinese, 
it  is  probable  that  some  were  ordained.  The  Franciscan 
Mission  apparently  took  no  steps  to  found  a  Chinese 
ministry.  There  is  only  one  case  on  record  of  a  Chinese 
bishop,  and  he  was  a  Chinese  who  had  become  a  Dominican 
monk.  Alu,  subsequently  called  Gregory  Lopez,  came 
from  the  Province  of  Fukien.  He  followed  the  Dominican 
preachers  to  Peking  and  was  imprisoned,  and  subsequently 
banished  with  them.  At  Manila  he  studied  Spanish,  Latin, 
and  philosophy.  In  1654  he  was  ordained,  being  the  first 
Chinese  priest  of  whom  any  record  exists.  In  1674 
Clement  x.  designated  him  as  Bishop  of  Basilea  and  Vicar 
Apostolic  over  six  provinces  in  China.  He  was,  however, 
too  humble  to  accept  the  honour,  and  was  not  consecrated 
as  a  bishop  till  1686,  when  he  was  over  seventy.  He 
died  at  Nanking  in  1687.  He  was  the  author  of  a 
pamphlet  of  twenty  pages,  in  which  he  defended  the 
observance  by  Christians  of  the  rites  observed  by  Con- 
fucianists  in  the  worship  or  commemoration  of  their 
ancestors.  The  Bishop  is  reported  to  have  been  a  man  of 
great  saintliness.^  Had  either  the  Franciscan  or  Nestorian 
Mission  succeeded  in  training  a  body  of  Chinese  clergy, 
there  is  little  doubt  that  their  work  would  have  continued. 
In  regard  to  the  translation  of  the  Bible  and  of  other 
books  in  connection  with  these  missions,  it  is  interesting 
to  note  that  of  500  books  which  the  early  Nestorian 
missionaries  possessed  35  were  translated  into  Chinese. 
One  of  these,  the  Book  of  the  Holy  King  David,  was 
apparently  the  Psalter,  and  another  was  the  hymn  in 
praise  of  the  Holy  Trinity  to  which  we  have  already 
referred.     The  later,  and  probably  the  earlier,  Nestorian 

^  Further  particulars  in  regard  to  Bishop  Alu  are  given  in  Qudif  {Echard) 
Scriptores  Ord:  Praedicatorum,  Tome  ii.  (1721),  p.  708,  and  in  Hue's 
ChrisUaibismus,  Tome  iii.  oh.  3. 


CHINA  175 

missions  used  Service  books  in  Syriac.  John  of  Monte 
Corvino  translated  into  the  "  Tartaric  tongue  "  the  Psalms 
and  the  New  Testament  and  part  of  the  Missal. 

The  Jesuits  obtained  leave  in  1615  to  celebrate 
Mass  in  Chinese,  but  there  is  no  evidence  to  show  that 
they  acted  upon  this  permission,  and  it  is  most  unlikely 
that  either  of  the  earlier  missions  translated  the  Mass 
into  Chinese. 

By  the  time  that  the  Jesuit  Mission  reached  China  few 
traces  remained  of  the  work  of  the  Nestorian  or  Franciscan 
missionaries.  According  to  Nicliolas  Trigault}  who  wrote 
early  in  the  seventeenth  century,  a  Jew  named  Ai  who 
had  come  from  Kaifengfu  told  Eicci  that  the  Christians 
"  had  been  very  numerous,  especially  in  the  northern 
provinces,  and  had  prospered  so  much  both  in  civil  and 
military  careers  that  they  had  made  the  Chinese  suspect 
a  revolution.  He  thought  the  suspicion  had  been  excited 
by  the  Saracens  .  .  .  not  more  than  sixty  years  before. 
And  it  had  reached  such  a  pitch  that  they  were  afraid 
that  the  magistrates  would  lay  hands  upon  them,  and  all 
fled  in  different  directions  and  professed,  from  fear  of 
death,  to  be  Saracens  or  Jews  or  for  the  most  part 
idolaters.     Their  churches  were  changed  into  idol  shrines."  ^ 

IV,  The  Jesuit  Mission. 

It  had  been  the  special  ambition  of  S.  Francis  Xavier 
to  preach  the  gospel  to  the  Chinese.  After  spending 
two  years  in  Japan,  he  landed  on  the  island  of  Shangch'uan, 
near  Macao,  where  he  died  of  fever  on  December  2,  1552, 
aged  forty-six,  without  having  set  foot  on  the  mainland  of 

^  Be  Christiana,  expeditione  (Rome,  1615),  pp.  119,  122  ff.  Nicholas 
Trigault  was  a  Jesuit  who  reached  China  just  after  Ricci's  death  and  was 
entrusted  with  the  editing  of  the  latter's  commentaries. 

2  I  am  indebted  for  this  reference  and  for  much  help  in  obtaining  in- 
formation concerning  the  Nestorian  and  Franciscan  Missions  to  the  Rev. 
A.  C.  Moule,  who  has  done  much  original  work  relating  to  early  Christian 
missions  to  China.  See  article,  "The  Failure  of  Early  Christian  Missions  to 
China,"  in  The  East  and  The  West  for  October  1914,  and  article  in  the 
Journal  of  the  Reyal  Asiatic  Society  for  July  1914. 


176  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

China.  Thirty  years  later  an  Italian  missionary  named 
Eicci,  who  was  a  member  of  the  Society  of  Jesus,  came  to 
China  as  a  member  of  an  embassy  from  Macao.  He  had 
been  preceded  by  Michael  Eogers,  who  had  arrived  three 
years  before.  Eicci's  methods,  which  were  followed  by  all 
subsequent  Jesuit  missionaries  in  China,  differed  widely 
from  those  of  Xavier.  During  the  first  seven  years  of  his 
work  he  dressed  as  a  Buddhist  priest.  He  strove  to  over- 
come the  prejudice  of  the  Chinese  and  to  ingratiate  himself 
and  his  mission  in  their  favour  by  assuring  them  that 
the  faith  which  he  came  to  teach  was  a  development  of 
Confucianism,  and  that  they  could  embrace  it  without 
abandoning  their  ancestral  beliefs  or  customs.  His  know- 
ledge of  mathematics  and  of  astronomy  won  their  respect, 
and  his  preaching  was  ere  long  attended  by  widespread 

results. 

A  mandarin  of  Shanghai,  who  on  his  baptism  took  the 
name  of  Paul,  did  much  to  commend  the  Christian  faith  to 
the  educated  classes. 

"His  youngest  daughter,  Candida,  was  a  remarkable 
woman.  Having  been  left  a  widow  at  an  early  age  she 
devoted  herself  to  the  promotion  of  the  cause  of  Christianity, 
and,  reserving  enough  for  her  eight  children,  she  conse- 
crated the  rest  of  her  fortune  to  the  founding  of  churches 
and  the  printing  of  Christian  books,  for  the  instruction  of 
the  surrounding  heathen.  Having  heard  that  the  pagans 
in  several  of  the  provinces  were  accustomed  to  abandon 
their  children  as  soon  as  born,  she  established  a  foundling 
hospital  for  infants,  and  seeing  many  blind  people  telling 
idle  stories  in  the  streets  for  the  sake  of  gain,  she  got  them 
instructed  and  sent  forth  to  relate  the  different  events  of 
Gospel  history.  A  few  years  before  her  death  the  Emperor 
conferred  on  her  the  title  of  the  'virtuous  woman'  and 
presented  her  with  a  rich  dress  covered  with  plates  of 
silver,  which  she  disposed  of  in  order  to  apply  the  proceeds 
to  acts  of  charity."  ^ 

At  the  time  of  Eicci's  death  in  1610  it  seemed  likely 
that  Christianity,  or  rather  an  amalgamation  of  Christianity 

1  China,  its  State  and  Prospects,  by  W.  H.  Medhurst,  1838,  p.  227  sq. 


CHINA  177 

and  Confucianism,  would  ere  long  become  the  religion  of 
China.  In  1622,  Adam  Schall,  a  German,  whose  policy 
was  the  same  as  that  of  Eicci,  became  the  head  of  the 
mission  in  China.  Eeports  of  its  success  reached  Europe 
and  evoked  the  enthusiasm  of  the  other  great  religious 
Orders,  and  in  1631  the  first  Dominican  missionaries 
arrived.  They  were  followed  by  the  Franciscans,  who 
re-entered  China  in  1633.  Ere  many  years  had  elapsed 
the  missionaries  attached  to  these  two  Orders  began 
to  protest  in  vehement  language  against  the  methods 
employed  by  the  Jesuits.  The  two  special  grounds  on 
which  they  denounced  the  Jesuit  missions  were  that 
they  allowed  their  converts  to  continue  "  ancestor-worship  " 
and  that  the  words  Tien  and  Shang  Ti,  which  they  had 
accepted  as  representing  the  Christian  God,  were  inadequate 
and  misleading.^  For  some  years  the  three  missions 
worked  on  side  by  side. 

In  1617  the  number  of  Christians  in  China  was 
reckoned  at  13,000.  These  had  increased  in  1650  to 
150,000.^  In  1669,  according  to  a  volume^  which  was 
published  in  Eome  in  1 671,the  Dominicans  had  21  churches, 
the  Franciscans  3,  and  the  Society  of  Jesus  159. 

The  number  of  baptized  Christians  was  then  308,780, 
of  whom  3500  had  been  baptized  by  the  Franciscan 
missionaries. 

In  1692  the  Emperor  Kanghsi,  who  had  been  educated 
by  Schall,  one  of  the  Jesuit  missionaries,  issued  a  decree 
in  which  he  legalized  the  preaching  of  the  Christian  faith 
throughout  the  Empire.* 

1  For  a  detailed  account  of  the  use  of  Tien  and  Shang  Ti  in  Chinese 
literature  see  article  by  Stanley  Smith  in  The  East  and  The  West,  April  1913. 
In  A.D.  1116  the  latter  title  was  given  to  a  Taoist  priest  by  an  imperial  decree. 

^  These  are  the  figures  given  by  Joannis  Adam  Schall  in  a  book  entitled 
Hisiorica  relatio  de  ortu  et  progressu  fidei  orthodoxae  in  regno  Chinensi 
(published  at  Ratisbon  in  1672),  p.  109. 

^  See  Compendiosa  narratio  de  statu  Missionis  Chinensis  ah  anno  1581 
usque  et  annum  1669,  oblato  Eminentissimis  Cardinalibus  sacrae  Congrega- 
tionis  de  propaganda  fide.     Romae,  1671.     (Copy  in  the  S.P.G.  library.) 

*  See  Lettres  6difiantes  et  curieuses  (published  in  Paris,  1781),  vol.  xvi. 
Preface,  p.  xiii. 
12 


178  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

P^re  Pelisson,  writing  from  Canton  on  December  9, 
1700,  states  that  the  Emperor  of  China  had  given  to 
the  members  of  the  Jesuit  Mission  a  house  in  the  Palace 
enclosure  and  had  contributed  towards  the  building  of  a 
Christian  church  in  Peking.^ 

In  1645,  Morales,  a  Dominican  missionary,  had  ob- 
tained a  bull  from  Pope  Innocent  x.  which  denounced  as 
superstitious  and  abominable  the  rites  connected  with 
ancestor-worship  which  the  Jesuits  had  approved.  In 
1656,  however,  the  Jesuits  induced  Pope  Alexander  vii.  to 
declare  that  they  were  merely  political  ceremonies,  and 
that  the  toleration  of  them  was  both  prudent  and  chari- 
table. In  1665,  during  a  temporary  persecution,  the 
missionaries  belonging  to  the  different  Orders  made  an 
unsuccessful  attempt  to  arrive  at  an  agreement.  In  1693, 
Maigrot,  the  Apostolic  Vicar  of  Fukien,  decided  that  Tien 
signified  nothing  more  than  the  material  heavens  and  that 
the  rites  connected  with  ancestral  worship  were  idolatrous, 
a  decision  which  was  endorsed  by  a  papal  decree  of 
Clement  xi.  in  1704.  In  1707,  Tournon,  the  papal  legate 
who  had  been  sent  from  Eome  to  China,  promulgated 
this  decree.  The  Emperor,  Kanghsi,  thereupon  banished 
the  legate  to  Macao,  where  he  died  under  suspicious  circum- 
stances in  1710.  The  Pope  sent  yet  another  legate,  who 
arrived  in  1720,  and  who  granted  "eight  permissions"  in 
connection  with  the  points  in  dispute,  which  were,  however, 
afterwards  disallowed  at  Pome.^ 

The  expression  Tien  Chu  is  used  to-day  by  all  the 
Chinese  connected  with  the  Eoman  Missions,  and  the 
religion  of  these  Chinese  is  everywhere  spoken  of  as  the 
Tien  Chu  religion.  The  same  term  is  used  by  the 
members  of  the  Greek  Church,  by  the  Anglican  Mission 
in  North  China,  and  by  the  American  Episcopal  Mission 
in  Mid-China. 

Shang    Ti    (supreme   ruler),  which   was    the    original 

*  Lettres  idifiantes  et  curieuses,  vol.  xvi.  p.  409. 

2  See  The  Jesuits  in  China  and  the  Legation  of  Cardinal  de  Tournon,  by 
R.  C.  Jenkins,  1894. 


CHINA  179 

Jesuit  term,  is  used  by  nearly  all  the  Missions  in  Central 
and  South  China.  It  is  also  adopted  as  the  rendering 
for  God  in  the  Anglican  Prayer  Book  in  use  in  North 
China. 

Some  American  missionaries  have  adopted  the  ex- 
pression Shin,  a  word  which  is  used  by  the  Chinese  for 
spirit  and  is  frequently  applied  by  them  to  an  idol.  It  is 
recognized  by  all  that  the  Chinese  language  does  not 
contain  any  satisfactory  equivalent  for  the  word  God,  and 
that  every  rendering  which  has  been  suggested  is  open  to 
more  or  less  serious  objection. 

It  is  impossible  for  the  impartial  student  of  Missions 
to  take  sides  either  with  the  Jesuits  or  with  the 
Franciscans  and  Dominicans  in  the  long  series  of  con- 
troversies which  did  much  to  discredit  the  work  of 
Christian  Missions  in  the  eyes  of  the  Chinese.  Eicci  and 
some  of  the  earliest  of  the  Jesuit  missionaries  in  China 
honestly  believed  that  they  were  following  the  example 
set  by  St.  Paul  at  Athens  when  they  tried  to  identify  the 
God  of  the  Christians  with  the  Power  or  Powers  held  in 
reverence  by  the  Chinese,  and  that  they  were  further 
justified  in  putting  for  the  time  being  into  the  background 
of  their  teaching  the  doctrine  of  the  Atonement.  They 
numbered  amongst  the  members  of  their  Order  some  of 
the  most  devoted  and  earnest  missionaries  who  have  ever 
visited  China.  Whilst  most  students  of  Christian  Missions 
will  agree  that  the  methods  which  they  adopted  in  China 
and  in  other  non-Christian  lands  have  been  shown  by  the 
logic  of  history  to  have  been  unwise,  if  not  actually 
wrong,  they  will  not  hastily  condemn  the  motives  that 
prompted  the  policy  which  the  Jesuits  adopted.  The 
steady  decline  in  the  number  of  Chinese  Christians  during 
the  eighteenth  century  was  in  part  due  to  a  decrease  of 
missionary  enthusiasm  in  Europe  and  in  part  to  persecu- 
tions in  China.  In  cases  where  Christian  missionaries 
appeal  for  support  to  rulers  of  non-Christian  countries,  the 
success  which  they  secure  as  the  result  of  such  an  appeal 
is  apt  to  be  transitory.     A  new  ruler,  prompted  by  advisers 


180  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

who  are  not  themselves  Christians,  is  easily  induced  to 
suspect  the  Christians  of  political  or  revolutionary  aims 
and  to  persecute  them  on  this  plea.  So  it  was  in  China,  and 
so  it  has  been  in  many  other  countries  where  Christian 
missionaries  have  attained  success  under  the  friendly 
auspices  of  a  ruler  who  has  not  himself  become  a  Christian. 
Kanghsi,  the  Emperor  who  had  done  much  for  the 
Jesuit  missionaries,  died  in  1721.  His  successor,  Yung- 
cheng,  was  persuaded  by  the  Chinese  literati  to  persecute 
the  Christians,  and  in  the  following  year  300  churches 
were  destroyed  and  300,000  Christians  were  left  without 
the  ministrations  of  their  Church.  When  Chienlung 
became  Emperor  in  1736  the  persecution  became  more 
severe  and  was  continued  with  occasional  intermission  for 
many  years.  In  1773  the  Jesuit  Mission  was  further 
weakened  by  the  suppression  of  its  Order  by  Clement  xiv. 
(It  was  re-established  by  Pius,  vii  in  1814.)  In  1815  a 
special  persecution  occurred  in  the  province  of  Szechwan. 
In  1819  the  imperial  censor  complained  of  the  existence 
of  Christians,  but  his  suggestion  that  the  existing  laws 
against  them  should  be  rigorously  enforced  was  rejected  by 
the  Emperor  on  the  ground  that  to  do  this  would  create  a 
disturbance. 

In  Tonking,  where  Christian  missions  were  carried  on  by 
the  Jesuits,^  the  persecutions  were  exceptionally  severe,  and 
continued  with  little  intermission  from  1720  down  to  the 
time  of  the  French  occupation  in  1883. 

In  1840  the  Vicariate  Apostolic  of  Eastern  Tonking, 
administered  by  the  Spanish  Dominicans,  contained  40 
native  priests  and  120,000  "catholics,"  whilst  the 
Vicariate  of  Western  Tonking,  the  missionaries  in  which 
belonged  to  the  French  Society  of  Foreign  Missions, 
contained  80  native  priests  and  180,000  "  catholics."  ^ 

According  to  Marchini's  map  of  Missions  presented  to 

1  The  Head  of  the  Jesuit  Mission  in  Tonking  during  the  first  year  of  his 
work  in  the  province  of  Tonking,  1692-93,  states  that  he  and  one  companion 
had  baptized  1735  persons  and  had  given  the  Holy  Communion  to  12,122. 

2  See  Annals  of  the  Propagation  of  the  Faith  (published  in  Paris,  1840), 
vol.  1.  p.  419. 


CHINA  181 

the  Bishop  of  Macao  in  1810,  the  Christians  in  the 
Chinese  Empire  then  numbered  215,000,  the  number  of 
missionaries  being  23  and  of  native  agents  80.  It  is 
difficult  to  say  what  reliance  can  be  placed  upon  these 
figures,  which  are  at  best  very  rough  estimates.  At  this 
time  the  chief  missionary  agencies  were  the  Propaganda 
and  the  Lazarites. 

(For  a  further  account  of  E.C.  missions  in  China  see 
p.  208.) 

V.  Modern  Missions. 

A  Chinese  politician  who  held  one  of  the  highest 
positions  under  the  new  republican  government,  in  answer 
to  the  question,  When  did  the  Chinese  revolutionary 
movement  begin  ?  replied.  On  the  day  that  Eobert  Morrison 
the  missionary  landed  in  Canton.  The  start  of  Protestant 
missions  in  China,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the 
earliest  Protestant  missionaries  were  wholly  devoid  of 
political  aims,  was,  in  fact,  the  introduction  of  a  new  factor 
into  the  political  life  of  China,  the  far-reaching  results  of 
which  can  now  be  seen. 

Bohert  Morrison'^  reached  China  in  1807  as  the 
representative  of  the  London  Missionary  Society. 

Although  he  was  not  directly  instrumental  in  winning 
many  converts,  his  literary  work  and  his  skill  and 
perseverance  in  overcoming  what  often  seemed  insuperable 
difficulties,  justify  us  in  regarding  him  as  one  of  the 
greatest  among  Christian  missionaries  to  China. 

Eobert  Morrison  was  born  near  Morpeth  in  1782  and 
his  youth  was  spent  at  Newcastle,  where  his  father  was  an 
elder  of  a  Scotch  church.  After  being  accepted  as  a 
missionary  he  started  for  China  via  America  and  landed 
at  Macao  on  September  7,  1807.  At  this  time  the 
dislike  of  foreigners  was  so  strong  that  it  was  a  capital 
offence  to  be  found  teaching  Chinese  to  a  foreigner,  and  in 

'  For  a  sketch   of  his  life  and  work  see  Life   of  Eobert  Morrison,  by 
W.  J.  Towusend. 


182  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

order  to  avoid  exciting  suspicion  he  lived  at  first  in 
complete  retirement.  In  1808  he  ceased  to  be  dependent 
upon  the  L.M.S.,  having  accepted  the  post  of  interpreter 
to  the  East  India  Company.  In  1813  he  was  joined  by 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Milne,  who,  however,  were  not  allowed  to 
remain  at  Macao.  Mr.  Milne  was  the  author  of  the 
description  of  the  Chinese  language  which  has  been  often 
quoted,  "To  acquire  Chinese  is  a  work  for  men  with 
bodies  of  brass,  lungs  of  steel,  heads  of  oak,  eyes  of  eagles, 
hearts  of  apostles,  memories  of  angels  and  lives  of 
Methusaleh." 

Morrison's  chief  work  was  of  a  literary  character. 
In  1813  he  published  the  whole  New  Testament  in  a 
colloquial  dialect,  and  later  on  he  printed,  at  the  expense 
of  the  East  India  Company,  his  Chinese  dictionary,  which 
was  of  immense  use  to  subsequent  missionaries  and 
students  of  the  language.  Before  his  death  in  1834  he 
had  translated  nearly  the  whole  of  the  Bible  into  Chinese 
and  had  published  in  addition  a  large  number  of  tracts  and 
booklets.  It  may  also  be  claimed  for  him  that  he 
introduced  medical  mission  work  into  China,  as  he 
established  a  dispensary  over  which  he  placed  a  qualified 
Chinese  practitioner.  The  first  medical  missionary  sent 
from  England  to  Cliina  was  Dr.  Lockhart,  who  was  sent  out 
by  the  L.M.S.  in  1839.  The  first  Chinese  to  become 
a  Christian  as  the  result  of  Protestant  missions  was 
Tsai  Ako,  who  was  baptized  by  Morrison  in  1814  "at  a 
spring  of  water,  issuing  from  the  foot  of  a  lofty  hill,  by 
the  seaside,  away  from  human  observation."  During  the 
twenty-five  years  which  followed  the  arrival  of  Morrison 
in  China  ten  baptisms  took  place,  two  of  the  converts 
being  Chinese  printers  who  had  worked  for  Dr.  Milne  at 
the  Malacca  College.  This  college,  which  was  started  by 
Dr.  Milne,  was  intended  partly  for  the  education  of 
Chinese  and  partly  for  training  European  students  of 
Chinese  who  desired  to  work  in  China. 

For  twenty-seven  years,  with  the  exception  of  his 
furlough  in  1824,  Morrison  laboured  on  practically  alone 


CHINA  183 

at  Canton  and  in  the  face  of  almost  every  possible  dis- 
couragement. At  the  time  of  his  death  there  were  only 
two  Protestant  missionaries  in  China,  both  of  whom 
belonged  to  the  American  Board  of  Missions. 

1835-1850. 

We  shall  now  refer  very  briefly  to  the  new  missions 
which  were  started  in  China  during  the  next  twenty-five 
years. 

The  Church  Missionary  Society  sent  Mr.  E.  B.  Squire, 
an  officer  in  the  Navy,  on  a  tentative  mission  to  Singapore 
and  Macao  in  1837.  In  1844  the  first  two  missionaries 
belonging  to  this  society  arrived  in  China,  namely,  the  Eev. 
G.  Smith  (afterwards  Bishop  of  Victoria,  Hong-Kong),  and 
the  Eev.  T.  M'Clatchie.  The  latter  started  missionary 
work  at  Shanghai.  In  1848  the  Eev.  W.  A.  Eussell 
(afterwards  Bishop  of  North  China)  and  the  Eev.  E.  Cobbold 
began  work  in  Ningpo,  which  eventually  became  one  of 
the  centres  of  the  C.M.S.  Chekiang  Mission  (see  p.  189). 

In  1845  the  English  General  Baptists  commenced  work 
in  Ningpo  which  was  carried  on  for  some  years,  but  was 
eventually  given  up. 

In  1847  the  English  Presbyterian  Church  sent  the 
Eev.  W.  C.  Burns  as  their  first  missionary  to  China.  He 
spent  some  time  in  Hong-Kong  and  Canton,  and  eventually 
started  permanent  work  in  Amoy  (see  p.  195). 

In  1836  the  American  Southern  Baptist  Mission  sent 
the  Eev.  Jehu  Shuck  as  a  missionary  to  Macao.  In 
1842  their  mission  was  moved  to  Hong-Kong,  and  during 
the  next  six  years  work  was  started  at  Canton  and 
Shanghai. 

In  1834  the  American  Baptist  Missionary  Union  sent 
a  missionary  to  work  amongst  Chinese  in  Siam,  and  in 
1842,  the  year  in  which  Hong-Kong  was  ceded  to  England, 
started  work  in  that  town. 

In  1835  the  American  Protestant  Episcopal  Church 
sent  two  missionaries  to  Canton,  who  retired  for  a  time 


184  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

to  Batavia.  In  1837  the  Kev.  W.  J.  Boone,  M.D.,  joined 
the  mission,  which  in  1842  was  established  at  Amoy.  In 
1845,  Dr.  Boone,  who  had  been  consecrated  as  a  bishop, 
brought  out  from  America  a  party  of  nine  workers,  where- 
upon the  mission  was  removed  to  Shanghai.  The  first 
convert,  who  was  baptized  on  Easter  Day  1846,  was  after- 
wards ordained  and  was  for  many  years  an  effective 
missionary. 

In  1842  the  American  Presbyterian  Mission  (North) 
sent  a  missionary  to  Macao,  and  during  the  following  eight 
years  opened  missions  at  Ningpo,  Amoy  and  Canton. 

In  1847  the  American  Methodist  Episcopal  Mission 
sent  their  first  missionary  to  China,  who  started  work  at 
Foochow. 

In  1848  the  American  Southern  Methodist  Mission 
sent  two  missionaries  to  China. 

In  1844  the  American  Presbyterian  Dutch  Reformed 
Church  started  work  at  Amoy,  where,  in  1846,  a  first 
convert  was  baptized. 

In  1846  the  Rhenish  Mission  at  Barmen  sent  out 
four  missionaries,  two  of  whom  belonged  to  the  Basel 
Mission.     They  reached  Hong-Kong  in  1847. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  list  of  missionary  societies 
given  above  that  by  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century 
active  interest  had  been  aroused  in  the  work  of  Chinese 
Missions  in  England,  America  and  Germany.  When  King 
Frederick  William  of  Prussia  was  informed  by  Bunsen 
that  experienced  men  in  England  doubted  the  possibility 
of  doing  missionary  work  in  China,  he  "  wrote  a  letter  of 
sixteen  pages,  urging  Bunsen  to  arouse  the  Bishops  and 
clergy  of  the  Church  of  England  to  more  vigorous  action 
for  the  evangelization  of  China."  ^ 

By  1850  there  were  at  least  a  dozen  Anglican  and 
Protestant  missionary  societies  at  work  in  China.  In 
most  cases  these  societies  had  but  recently  commenced 
work,  and   it   is   doubtful  whether  the  whole  number  of 

^  See   "Private  Journal,"  October  11,  1850,  quoted  in  History  of  the 
C.M.S.,  i.  468. 


CHINA  185 

Christian  converts  connected  with  these  missions  exceeded 
a  hundred.  Missionary  work,  moreover,  hardly  extended 
beyond  the  five  treaty  ports.  Canton,  Amoy,  Shanghai, 
Ningpo  and  Foochow,  which  were  declared  open  to 
foreigners  by  the  Treaty  of  Nanking  in   1842. 

1850-1875. 

On  Good  Friday,  1850,  the  first  English  bishop  (Dr. 
George  Smith)  arrived  at  Hong-Kong  accompanied  by  a 
party  of  C.M.S.  missionaries.  Work  was  started  by  the 
C.M.S.  in  the  great  city  of  Foochow  in  May  1850,  and 
in  1851  the  first  five  converts  in  connection  with  the 
C.M.S.  were  baptized,  two  at  Ningpo  and  three  (blind  men) 
at  Shanghai.  By  the  end  of  1855  the  number  of  converts 
at  Ningpo  had  increased  to  sixty.  While  Bishop  Smith  was 
delivering  his  first  charge,  the  church  at  Shanghai  in  which 
he  was  speaking  was  struck  by  a  cannon  ball  fired  by  the 
Taipings,  the  rebellion  raised  by  whom  had  a  direct  bearing 
upon  the  progress  of  the  missions  in  China. 

No  rebellion  that  has  taken  place  for  centuries  has 
been  so  prolific  in  massacres  and  nameless  atrocities ; 
nevertheless,  as  we  look  back,  after  an  interval  of  sixty  years, 
we  are  forced  to  admit  that  General  Gordon's  successful 
repression  of  the  Taiping  rebellion,  and  the  continuance  of 
the  Manchu  dynasty  which  it  involved  and  on  behalf  of 
which  he  fought,  put  back  the  clock  of  China's  progress 
for  at  least  several  decades. 

The  instigator  of  the  Taiping  revolt,  Hung  Hsiuch'uan, 
came  under  the  influence  of  a  Christian  missionary  (who 
was  probably  Morrison)  at  Canton  in  1833.  In  1837 
he  declared  that  he  had  seen  a  vision  in  which  he  had 
received  a  divine  command  to  destroy  idolatry,  and  to  put 
an  end  to  the  Manchu  dynasty.  In  1853  he  and  his 
followers  stormed  and  captured  the  great  city  of  Nanking. 
When  the  British  Plenipotentiary  went  up  to  Nanking, 
his  boat  encountered  "  hundreds  of  colossal  images  of 
Buddha  and  various  gods  and  goddesses,  broken  and  defaced, 


186  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

floating  down  the  river."  It  is  not  possible  here  to 
describe  the  course  of  the  Taiping  revolt.^  Suffice  it  to 
say  that  the  movement,  the  leaders  of  w^hich  were  at  first 
inspired  by  good  motives,  degenerated  into  a  rebellion 
which  devastated  the  fairest  provinces  of  China  and 
resulted  in  the  massacre  of  millions  of  people.  The 
rebellion,  which  began  in  1850,  ended  with  the  capture 
of  Nanking  in  1864. 

After  describing  the  course  of  the  Taiping  rebellion, 
Dr.  Norris  (now  Bishop  in  North  China)  writes : 

"  It  is  argued  with  much  apparent  reason  that  Christian 
missions  may  aim  at  the  conversion  of  Chinese  individuals, 
may  found  little  Christian  communities  in  every  province 
of  the  Empire,  may  perhaps  in  time  meet  with  such  success 
that  those  communities  will  be  mainly  self-supporting  and 
self-governing ;  but  that  the  idea  of  Christianity  ever  really 
permeating  China,  as  much,  for  example,  as  it  permeated 
Western  Europe  in  the  Middle  Ages,  or  as  it  permeates 
European  nations  to-day,  is  a  wild  and  impossible  dream 
which  will  require  the  lapse  of  several  centuries  before  it 
can  approach  fulfilment.  .  .  .  Surely  the  history  of  the 
Taiping  movement  has  a  warning  for  the  critic,  no  less  than 
a  real  encouragement  for  ourselves.  Granted  that  it  was 
not  in  the  end  successful,  granted  that  it  won  its  way  by 
methods  of  which  a  truer  Christianity  would  be  ashamed,  it 
remains  true  that  a  movement  which  took  shape  originally 
in  the  brain  of  a  single  man  .  .  .  which  made  no  apparent 
stir  for  several  years,  ran  like  wildfire  when  once  it  started. 
Spreading  from  district  to  district,  from  province  to  pro- 
vince, it  speedily  established  itself  from  Canton  to  Nanking, 
and  from  thence  made  a  great  effort,  not  far  short  of  success, 
to  reach  Peking  itself.  .  .  .  The  Church  of  Christ,  whatever 
her  shortcomings,  has  something  better  to  offer  than  the 
religion  of  the  Taiping  Wang  ...  it  may  be  that  for  the 
present,  and  for  years  to  come,  she  will  make  no  apparent 
stir;  but  at  least  she  is  justified  in  claiming  that  in  the 
light  of  history  it  is  not  incredible  that  Christianity  should 
one  day  run  like  wildfire  over  China,  until  the  whole  nation 
has  been  won  for  Christ."  ^ 

^  For  specimens  of  its  proclamations  and  literature  see  History  of  the 
C.M.S.,  ii.  297  ff. 

^  China,  by  F.  L.  Norris,  pp.  48  sq^. 


CHINA  187 

In  1842  the  total  number  of  communicants  unconnected 
with  the  Eoman  Missions  was  6,  by  1 8  5  5  these  had  increased 
to  500,andby  1860  to  about  1000.    In  1877  ^  the  number 
of  Christian  converts  was  reckoned  at  13,0 00,  and  the  total 
number  of  European  missionaries  at  473,  of  whom  228  were 
connected  with  British,  and  212  with  American  societies. 
We  have  already  mentioned  the   names   of   the   societies 
which  were  represented  in  China  prior  to  1850.     There 
are  now  over  100  missionary  societies,  large  and  small,  at 
work  in  China.     It  may  be  well  to  note  the  dates  at  which 
some  of  the  larger  societies  began  their  work  there.     The 
Wesleyan   Methodist  Missionary   Society   entered   China  in 
1852,  the   United  Presbyterian  Mission  (to  Manchuria)  in 
187 2',  the  Church  of  Scotland  Mission  in  1877,  the  Society 
for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  sent  two  men  to  Peking  in 
1863,  but  did  not  commence  regular  work  in  China  till  1874. 
The  society  which   supports   more   missionaries  in   China 
than  any  other,  i.e.  The  China  Inland  Mission,  was  founded  in 
1865  by  the  Kev.  Hudson  Taylor,  who  himself  began  work 
in  China  in  1 8 5  3.    In  1 8 7  5  the  C.I.M.  was  carrying  on  work 
in  fifty  stations  scattered  over  five  provinces  (see  p.  192). 

In  few  other  countries  have  the  pioneer  missionaries 
met  with  so  many  discouragements  and  waited  so  long  to 
see  visible  results  from  their  labours.  This  fact  is  specially 
significant,  as  the  progress  of  Christianity  in  China  during 
recent  years  bids  fair  to  outdo  the  progress  in  any  other 
large  non-Christian  country.  The  experience  of  the  C.M.S. 
missionaries  in  Foochow  may  be  quoted  as  typical  of  that 
which  has  been  repeated  in  many  other  places.  This 
society  commenced  work  in  the  city  of  Foochow  in  1850. 
After  ten  years  had  elapsed,  "  without  a  single  conversion, 
or  the  prospect  of  such  a  thing,"  the  committee  at  home 
discussed  the  desirabihty  of  withdrawing  this  mission.  In 
the  following  year,  that  is  after  eleven  years  of  earnest, 
devoted  work,  the  first  convert  was  baptized,  who  was  the 
first-fruits  of  a  mission  which  has  since  attained  most 
encouraging  results  (see  p.  189). 

1  We  have  not  been  able  to  secure  the  exact  statistics  for  1875. 


188 


HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 


It  is  impossible  to  sketch  in  detail  the  work  of  the 
hundred  and  more  European  and  American  missionary 
societies  which  are  now  represented  in  China,  but  it  will 
be  worth  while  to  give  a  very  few  statistics  which  will 
show  how  far  the  various  denominations  are  represented. 
The  figures  relate  to  the  year  1913. 


^  Under  Lutheran  are  included  most  of  the  German,  Swiss,  Norwegian, 
Scandinavian  and  Swedish  missions. 

2  Under  Congregationalist  are  included  the  L.M.S.  and  the  A.B.C.F.M. 

2  These  returns  include  those  of  twelve  continental  societies  which  are 
affiliated  to  the  C.I.M. 

*  These  returns  include  school  teachers  as  well  as  church  workers. 

°  These  statistics  are  for  1912. 


Anglican  Missions. 

On  April  26,  1912,  the  representatives  of  the  eleven 
Anglican  dioceses  in  China  decided  to  form  one  united 
Church,  the  title  of  which  should  be  Chung  Hua  Sheng 
Kung  Hui  (pronounced  Joong  Hwa  Shung  Goong  Hway). 
Its  constitution  and  organization  correspond  with  those  of 
the  Nippon  sei  Kokwai  of  Japan.  It  is  founded  upon  the 
recognition  of  the  Lambeth  quadrilateral,  i.e.  the  historic 
episcopate,  two  sacraments,  two  creeds,  and  the  acceptance 
of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments.  The  first  act  of  the 
synod  of  the  new  Church  was  to  form  a  Board  of  Missions, 
which  is  to  present  at  its  next  meeting,  in  1915,  a  report 
proposing  that  the  eleven  united  dioceses  should  combine 


CHINA  189 

to  send  a  mission  to  some  untouched  part  of  China  and 
that  this  mission  should  have  a  Chinese  bishop  as  its 
leader. 

The  Anglican  missions  are  supported  by  the  C.M.S. 
in  Central  and  Southern  China,  by  the  S.P.G.  and  the 
Canadian  Church  in  North  China,  and  by  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church  of  America  in  Central  China. 

The  dioceses  in  which  the  missions  of  the  Church 
Missionary  Society  are  situated  are  those  of  Victoria  (Hong- 
Kong),  Chekiang,  Western  China,  Fukien  and  Hunan. 

Hong-Kong  (1849).  Since  1900  the  Chinese  Christians 
have  undertaken  the  entire  pecuniary  responsibility  for  the 
support  of  their  pastors  and  the  upkeep  of  their  churches 
in  the  city  of  Hong-Kong.  A  church  hostel  for  under- 
graduates at  the  new  Hong-Kong  University  was  opened 
at  the  same  time  as  the  university  in  1912.  The  mission 
work  of  the  Church  on  the  mainland  is  carried  on  from 
Canton  and  Pakhoi.  At  Canton  a  training  college  was 
opened  in  1912;  at  Pakhoi  there  are  hospitals  for  lepers 
and  other  patients. 

Chekiang,  formerly  part  of  Mid-China  (1872).  The 
missionary  work  centres  round  Ningpo,  Hangchow, 
Taichow,  Chuki  and  Shaohing.  There  is  a  theological 
college  and  normal  school  at  Ningpo,  an  Anglo- Chinese 
school  at  Shaohing,  and  a  girls'  high  school  at  Hangchow. 
The  C.M.S.  supports  three  hospitals  in  this  diocese.  Its 
staff  includes  24  Chinese  clergy. 

The  diocese  of  Western  China  (1895)  is  practically 
co-extensive  with  the  province  of  Szechwan,  and  the  work 
is  chiefly  of  an  evangelistic  character.  There  is  a  diocesan 
training  college  at  Paoning,  a  church  hostel  in  connection 
with  the  new  university  at  Chengtu  and  a  medical  mission 
at  Mienchu.  In  this  diocese  several  of  the  Anglican 
missionaries  are  supported  by  the  C.I.M.  The  bishop  and 
the  missionaries  wear  Chinese  dress. 

Fuhien  (1906).  Foochow,  which  is  the  chief  centre  of 
work,  was  occupied  in  1850,  and  eleven  years  passed  before 
the  first  convert  was  baptized  (see  p.  187).     The  missionary 


J  90  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

institutions  in  Foochow  include  a  hospital  and  a  Union 
medical  college  and  a  school  for  the  blind.  The  diocesan 
staff  includes  1 8  Chinese  clergy.  Work  amongst  lepers  is 
carried  on  at  five  centres.  Dublin  University  supports  a 
mission  in  this  diocese  in  connection  with  the  C.M.S. 

Kwangsi  and  Hunan  (1909).  Work  is  carried  on  at 
Siangtan,  Kueilinfu,  Yungchow  and  Hengchow. 

Amongst  the  missionaries  who  have  worked  in  con- 
nection with  the  C.M.S.  in  China  should  specially  be 
mentioned  the  Rev.  George  E.  Moule,  who  went  out  to 
China  in  1858  and  was  Bishop  in  Mid-China  1880-1907, 
and  Archdeacon  J.  R  Wolfe,  the  pioneer  of  the  Fukien 
Mission. 

The  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  began  work 
in  China  in  1863,  but  its  work  was  interrupted  and  was 
not  definitely  started  till  1874,  when  the  Rev.  C.  P.  Scott 
and  a  companion  were  sent  to  Chefoo.  Mr.  Scott  became 
the  Bishop  of  North  China  in  1880  and  continued  as 
bishop  till  his  resignation  in  1913.  The  present  bishop, 
Dr.  Frank  Norris,  by  the  influence  which  he  exerted  over 
the  Chinese  Christians  in  Peking,  was  largely  instrumental 
in  preserving  the  European  Legations  during  the  Boxer 
revolution  in  1900,  till  they  were  relieved  by  the  allied 
forces.  With  the  help  of  the  Pan-Anglican  grant  a  large 
school  has  been  opened  in  Peking.  The  society  also 
shares  in  the  work  of  the  Union  medical  college. 

The  diocese  of  Shantung  (1903)  includes  the  province 
of  the  same  name.  There  is  a  college  at  Chefoo.  Other 
centres  are  at  Pingyin  and  Taianfu.  The  medical  work 
of  the  university  is  at  Chinanfu  and  the  Arts  College  at 
Weihsien.  It  is  proposed  to  remove  the  latter  also  to 
Chinanfu.  A  mission  hospital  has  been  established  at 
Yenchowfu,  near  the  birthplace  of  Confucius. 

Three  missionaries  in  connection  with  the  S.P.G.  were 
martyred  during  the  Boxer  outbreak,  namely,  S.  M.  W. 
Brooks,  C.  Robinson  and  H.  V.  Norman.  In  1 9 1 2  the  Rev. 
Frederick  Day  was  murdered  by  Chinese  soldiers  near 
Paotingfu. 


CHINA  191 

The  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  America  supports 
missions  in  the  Yangtse  Valley  at  Shanghai,  and  in  the 
district  of  Hankow  and  Wuchang.  This  mission  has  from 
the  first  afforded  an  instructive  object-lesson  of  the  good 
results  to  be  attained  by  concentrating  on  a  few  strategic 
positions  instead  of  attempting  to  spread  its  influence  over 
a  wide  area.  In  1844  the  Eev.  W.  S.  Boone  was  con- 
secrated as  bishop  of  the  missionary  district  of  Shanghai. 
No  missionary  colleges  have  exercised  a  wider  influence 
in  China  than  St.  John's  University  College,  which  was 
founded  by  Bishop  Schereschewsky  in  1872  at  Shanghai, 
and  Boone  University  College  at  Wuchang,  which  was 
started  (as  a  school)  in  1871.  At  the  latter  college 
several  of  those  who  acted  as  leaders  in  the  last  Chinese 
revolution  received  their  education.  At  Wuchang  are 
situated  also  the  Boone  Medical  and  Divinity  schools. 

The  bishoprics,  or  rather  missionary  districts,  supported 
by  this  mission  are  those  of  Shanghai  (1844),  Hankow 
(1901)  and  Anking  (1911).  In  the  missionary  district 
of  Shanghai,  which  consists  of  the  province  of  Kiangsu,  the 
chief  centres  of  work,  apart  from  Shanghai,  are  Soochow, 
Wusih,  Kiating,  Yangchow  and  Zangzok.  In  the  missionary 
district  of  Hanhow,  which  includes  the  provinces  of  Hupeh 
and  Hunan,  the  chief  centres  are  Hankow  and  Wuchang. 
In  the  missionary  district  of  Anking  (formerly  Wuhu), 
which  comprises  the  province  of  Anhwei  and  that  part 
of  Kiangsi  which  lies  north  of  lat.  28°,  the  chief  centres  of 
work  are  Wuhu  and  Anking  in  the  Anhwei  province,  and 
Kiukiang  and  Nanchang  in  the  province  of  Kiangsi. 

Amongst  the  missionaries  who  have  been  members  of 
this  mission,  the  name  of  Bishop  Schereschewsky  is 
deserving  of  special  mention.  He  was  a  Eussian  Jew 
who  was  converted  in  America,  and  after  working  as  a 
missionary  in  Peking  for  some  years,  was  eventually 
consecrated  as  Bishop  of  Shanghai  (1877).  For  the  last 
twenty -five  years  of  his  life  he  was  paralyzed  and  unable 
to  speak  distinctly,  and  used  a  typewriter  which  he  worked 
with   two  fingers.       He   translated    the  whole  Bible  and 


192  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

the  Prayer  Book  into  literary  Chinese  (Wenli)  and  the 
Old  Testament  into  Mandarin.  After  he  became  paralyzed 
he  relinquished  the  duties  of  the  bishopric  in  1884,  but 
he  continued  to  work  in  the  cause  of  missions  till  his 
death  in  1906. 

In  1909  the  Church  of  England  in  Canada  undertook 
to  support  a  bishop  and  a  staff  of  missionaries  in  the 
province  of  Roman.  The  centre  of  the  work,  which  is  still 
in  a  pioneer  stage,  is  at  Kaifeug. 

Protestant  Missions. 

The  founder  of  the  China  Inland  Mission,  the  Eev.  J. 
Hudson  Taylor,  M.E.C.S.,  went  to  China  in  1853  in  con- 
nection with  the  Chinese  Evangelization  Society.  Forced 
by  ill-health  to  return  in  1860,  he  spent  several  years  in 
pleading  the  cause  of  China,  and  in  1865  he  organized  the 
China  Inland  Mission.  One  of  its  distinctive  rules  has 
been  that  its  workers  receive  no  fixed  salaries  and  are 
not  authorized  to  solicit  funds  on  its  behalf.  In  1866  Dr. 
Taylor  returned  to  China  accompanied  by  the  first  fifteen 
members  of  the  mission  staff.  For  the  first  twenty  years 
the  work  of  this  mission  was  largely  of  a  pioneer  character. 
In  1876  it  started  work  in  the  provinces  of  Shansi,  Shensi 
and  Kansu,  and  in  1877  in  Szechwan,  Yunnan  and 
Kweichow.  Since  then  its  field  of  operations  has  steadily 
expanded  until  it  has  now  work  at  227  centres  situated 
in  eighteen  provinces  of  China  and  in  Chinese  Turkestan. 
In  1884  seven  Cambridge  graduates,  who  included  amongst 
their  number  the  captain  of  the  cricket  eleven  (C.  T. 
Studd)  and  the  stroke  of  the  university  boat  (Stanley 
Smith),  joined  the  mission  staff,  and  their  departure  for 
China  helped  to  make  known  to  a  wide  circle  the  needs 
of  the  Chinese  and  the  good  work  which  the  C.I.M.  had 
already  accomplished  on  their  behalf.  In  1876  the 
mission  began  to  send  out  unmarried  women  as  missionaries, 
and  by  1881  work  amongst  Chinese  women  had  been 
started  in  six  of  the  inland  provinces.     The  income  of  the 


CHINA  193 

mission  in  1913  was  £91,000,  of  which  £51,000  was 
received  in  England.  Its  European  and  American  staff 
in  China  is  988  (including  wives),  of  whom  580  are 
women.  Its  list  of  martyrs  contains  58  names.  Its 
missionaries  belong  to  various  denominations,  those  attached 
to  each  denomination  being  grouped  together.  In  Western 
China  its  members,  who  belong  to  the  Church  of  England, 
are  superintended  by  Bishop  Cassels. 

Amongst  the  ranks  of  its  workers  have  been  many  the 
record  of  whose  lives,  if  it  could  be  given,  would  add  a 
new  page  to  the  story  of  missionary  heroism.  It  is  true 
that  criticisms  have  from  time  to  time  been  made  that  this 
society,  in  its  anxiety  to  start  new  centres  and  occupy  new 
provinces,  has  sent  out  men  and  women  whose  chief  qualifi- 
cation was  their  intense  desire  to  become  missionaries,  but 
who  had  given  no  evidence  that  they  were  able  to  act  as 
Christian  teachers  under  the  extremely  difficult  conditions 
under  which  their  work  in  China  would  have  to  be  carried 
on.  These  criticisms,  which  have  sometimes  been  made  by 
those  who  knew  China  well  and  were  anxious  to  promote 
missions  to  the  Chinese,  are  to  some  extent  justified,  but 
the  fact  that  enthusiasm  has  outrun  knowledge  and  that 
the  methods  adopted  have  been  proved  by  experience  to 
be  faulty,  must  not  be  allowed  to  diminish  our  appreciation 
of  the  great  work  which  has  been  accomplished  by  this 
society.  The  mission  has  established  training  homes  in 
China  for  men  and  women  missionaries,  where  newly 
arrived  recruits  can  study  the  Chinese  language  and  receive 
training  to  prepare  them  for  their  future  work. 

The  work  of  the  London  Missionary  Society  (1807)  is 
carried  on  in  North  China,  Central  China,  Shanghai  and 
district,  Amoy  and  district,  and  in  Canton  province.  Its 
European  staff  includes  43  missionaries,  in  addition  to  25 
doctors  who  superintend  twenty-six  hospitals.  The  number 
of  its  full  church  members  is  about  10,000.  In  many 
cases  its  congregations  have  become  entirely  self-supporting 
and  self-governed,  and  carry  on  missionary  work  on  their 
own  initiative.  In  Peking  the  L.M.S.  has  a  large  medical 
13 


194  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

college  in  which  teaching  is  given  by  members  of  all  the 
missions  in  that  city  except  the  Koman  Catholics.  Its 
most  famous  institution  is  the  Anglo-Chinese  College  at 
Tientsin,  of  which  Dr.  S.  Lavington  Hart  was  the  founder 
and  first  Principal.  Its  list  of  missionaries  includes  the 
names  of  Morrison,  Milne,  Medhurst,  Lockhart,  Legge, 
Griffith  John  and  Gilmour.  We  have  already  referred  to 
the  work  done  by  the  first  three.  Dr.  James  Legge  (1815- 
97)  was  appointed  in  1840  to  take  charge  of  the  Anglo- 
Chinese  College  at  Malacca,  which  had  been  founded  by 
Dr.  Morrison  and  Dr.  Milne,  and  was  afterwards  moved  to 
Hong-Kong.  In  1876  he  was  appointed  Professor  of 
Chinese  Language  and  Literature  at  Oxford,  and  was 
the  translator  into  English  of  all  the  Chinese  Classics. 
Dr.  Griffith  John  (1831-1912)  spent  the  greater  part 
of  his  life  at  Hankow.  His  writings  in  Chinese  are  known 
all  over  China.  (For  reference  to  the  work  of  James 
Gilmour  see  p.  215.) 

Its  first  woman  missionary  was  appointed  to  China  in 
1868. 

The  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign 
Missions  (1847)  supports  work  in  the  city  and  neighbour- 
hood of  Foochow.  In  this  city  it  has  a  theological 
seminary  which  is  jointly  supported  by  the  C.M.S. 
and  the  A.M.E.C.  It  also  helps  to  support  a  Union 
medical  training  college  in  conjunction  with  the  C.M.S. 
and  the  Methodists. 

In  Peking  it  helps  to  support  a  Union  men  and 
women's  medical  college,  a  Union  women's  college  and  a 
Union  theological  college.  Its  roll  of  missionaries  includes 
the  name  of  Dr.  Peter  Parker,  who  was  the  first  regular 
medical  missionary  to  China  in  modern  times. 

The  Government  officials  in  the  province  of  Shansi 
have  offered  to  place  all  the  Government  schools  in  eight 
counties,  containing  a  population  of  4,000,000,  under  the 
superintendence  of  the  A.B.C.F.M.  missionaries,  and  the 
society  has  sent  additional  missionaries  to  take  charge  of 
the  schools. 


CHINA  195 

The  chief  centres  of  the  Preshyterian  Church  of  Eng- 
land Mission  (1847)  are  at  Amoy,  Swatow  and  Tainan  in 
Formosa.  The  mission  supports  14  hospitals,  4  theo- 
logical colleges  and  a  large  number  of  schools.  It  has 
50  ordained  Chinese  ministers  and  about  12,000  com- 
municant members.  Its  most  famous  missionary  was  Eev. 
W.  C.  Burns  (1815-68),  who  laboured  chiefly  at  Amoy 
and  Swatow.  He  became  a  good  Chinese  scholar,  and 
translated  The  Pilgrims  Progress  and  other  books  into 
Chinese. 

The  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Preshyterian 
Church  in  the  U.S.A.,  which  began  work  in  China  in  1844, 
has  over  300  missionaries,  of  whom  90  are  ordained  clergy 
and  40  are  medical  missionaries.  It  has  eight  chief 
centres  situated  in  the  provinces  of  Chihli,  Shantung, 
Kiangsu,  Chekiang,  Anhwei,  Hunan,  Kwangtung  and  the 
island  of  Hainan.  It  has  a  staff  of  over  1000  Chinese 
preachers  and  teachers,  126  organized  churches  with  more 
than  20,000  communicants.  Its  69  hospitals  and  dis- 
pensaries treat  about  200,000  cases  each  year.  Its 
educational  institutions  include  the  Shantung  Union  Uni- 
versity, the  University  of  Nanking,  the  college,  medical 
school  and  theological  seminary  in  Peking  and  the  theo- 
logical seminary  in  Nanking,  in  all  of  which  it  works  in 
co-operation  with  other  missionary  organizations. 

Amongst  those  who  have  served  on  its  staff  may  be 
mentioned  the  names  of  John  G.  Kerr,  M.D.,  John  L. 
Nevius,  C.  W.  Mateer  and  W.  A.  P.  Martin.  Dr.  Nevius 
laboured  in  China  from  1854  to  1893  and  did  much 
useful  translation  work.  Dr.  Martin,  who  is  the  author  of 
a  number  of  books  in  Chinese,  was  President  of  the 
Imperial  University. 

The  various  Presbyterian  missions  in  China  have  taken 
steps  in  view  of  constituting  an  independent  Chinese 
Presbyterian  Church.  The  Churches  represented  at  the 
Council  which  was  held  at  Chinanfu  in  1914  in  view  of 
organizing  this  Church  were  the  English,  Scotch,  Irish, 
Canadian,  Dutch  Eeformed,  Northern  and  Southern  (U.S.A) 


196  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Presbyterians.  The  converts  connected  with  these  missions 
number  over  60,000  adult  Church  members. 

The  Wesley  an  Methodist  Missionary  Society  (1852)  sup- 
ports work  in  the  central  portion  of  the  Kwangtung  province 
and  in  the  adjoining  Kwangsi  province.  It  has  hospitals  at 
Fatshan  and  Wuchow  and  a  home  for  lepers  at  the  latter 
place.  Farther  north  in  the  Wuchang  district  it  has  4 
hospitals.  At  Wuchang  itself  it  has  a  college,  high  school 
and  theological  institution.  In  the  Hunan  district  it 
supports  2  hospitals  and  a  theological  school.  Its  roll  of 
missionaries  includes  the  name  of  the  Eev.  David  Hill 
(1840-96).  He  worked  chiefly  at  Hankow,  and  died 
of  typhus  whilst  administering  famine  relief.  He  was 
instrumental  in  the  conversion  of  Pastor  Hsi,  a  well-known 
Chinese  missionary  connected  with  the  C.I.M. 

The  English  Bai^tist  Mission  (1859)  carries  on  work  in 
the  provinces  of  Shantung,  Shansi  and  Shensi.  It  has  a 
European  staff  of  52  men  and  52  women  who  work  at 
nineteen  chief  stations.  Its  communicant  members  number 
about  6000.  The  mission  supports  12  medical  mis- 
sionaries and  6  hospitals. 

In  Shantung  the  mission  has  started  a  Christian  Uni- 
versity, which  is  carried  on  partly  by  the  B.M.S.  and  partly 
by  the  American  Presbyterians.  It  consists  of  a  theo- 
logical college  and  normal  school  at  Chingchoufu  with  200 
students,  rather  more  than  half  of  whom  are  Baptists ; 
an  arts  college  at  Weihsien  with  350  students,  and  a 
medical  college  and  hospital  in  Chinanfu,  which  is  the 
capital  of  the  province.  The  S.P.G.  has  opened  a  hostel 
for  its  students  at  Weihsien  who  are  attending  the  university. 
In  the  course  of  a  revival  which  took  place  in  November 
1909,  100  of  the  students  joined  the  Volunteer  Missionary 
Band  and  have  since  been  actively  engaged  in  evangelistic 
work. 

One  of  the  missionaries  belonging  to  the  B.M.S.  is  Dr. 
Timothy  Eichard,  who  was  the  first  Chancellor  of  the 
Imperial  University  established  by  the  Chinese  Govern- 
ment of  Shansi  after  the  Boxer  rising  in  1900.     He  has 


CHINA  197 

contributed  more  than  any  other  missionary  towards  the 
creation  of  a  Chinese  Christian  literature. 

The  Baptist  Foreign  Mission  Society  (U.S.A.)  (1836) 
supports  work  in  South,  West  and  East  China.  In  con- 
junction with  the  Southern  Baptist  Convention  Mission 
it  supports  a  large  college  and  seminary  at  Shanghai.  It 
shares  in  the  support  of  the  universities  of  Nanking  and 
Chengtu  in  West  China. 

Other  societies  which  support  a  large  amount  of  work 
in  China  are  (the  numbers  in  brackets  represent  the  foreign 
staff) — The  Irish  Presbyterian  Church  Mission  (44),  The 
Canadian  Presbyterian  Mission  (80),  The  Berlin  (59)',  The 
Basel  (72),  and  The  Swedish  Missionary  Societies  (51), 
The  Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance,  U.S.A.  (87),  The 
Presbyterian  Church,  South,  U.S.A.  (129),  and  the  Inter- 
national Y.M.C.A.  (75). 

Amongst  missionary  organizations  should  be  mentioned 
the  Christian  Literature  Society  for  China,  which  by  its 
translations  and  by  its  books  composed  in  Chinese  has 
done  much  to  spread  a  knowledge  of  Christian  literature 
throughout  China. 

The  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  is  exerting 
a  wide  influence  in  many  different  parts  of  China,  and 
several  Chinese  who  have  recently  become  prominent 
poHticians  have  been  associated  with  it.  At  its  national 
convention  held  in  Peking  in  1912  requests  were  received 
from  several  provincial  governors  asking  that  branches  of 
the  Association  might  be  formed  in  their  provinces.  The 
YM.C.A.  is  likely  to  exercise  an  increasing  influence  in 
the  near  future. 

In  China,  as  in  all  other  non-Christian  countries,  the 
work  of  missions  has  been  greatly  helped  by  the  circula- 
tion of  the  Scriptures  by  the  Bible  Societies  of  England, 
Scotland  and  America.  The  B.  and  F.  B.  Society  alone 
circulated  in  1913  considerably  over  two  million  portions 
of  the  Bible  in  various  Chinese  versions. 

We  do  not  propose  to  trace  the  statistical  advance  of 
the   104  missionary  societies  which  are  now  working  in 


198  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

China,  nor  to  illustrate  by  tables  the  gradual  spread  of 
their  work  throughout  the  different  provinces.  In  each  of 
its  twenty-one  provinces  mission  stations  are  now  to  be 
found,  but  in  several  of  them  the  proportion  of  missionaries 
to  the  population  is  less  than  1  to  200,000. 

The  increase  in  the  number  of  Christians  in  China 
which  has  taken  place  since  the  beginning  of  this  century 
has  been  proportionately  more  rapid  than  at  any  previous 
period  within  recent  times.  During  the  first  ten  years  of 
this  century  the  number  of  European  missionaries  (which 
is  now  5186)  increased  50  per  cent.,  the  number  of 
Chinese  missionaries  still  more  rapidly,  and  the  number  of 
Christian  adherents  was  more  than  doubled. 

The  rapid  increase  during  recent  years  is  undoubtedly 
connected  with  the  persecutions  to  which  the  Christians 
have  been  exposed. 

There  are  few,  if  any  other,  instances  in  Christian  history 
in  which  an  attempt  to  exterminate  the  Christians  over  a 
wide  area  has  resulted  in  so  immediate  and  large  an  increase 
in  their  number  and  in  such  a  strengthening  and  expansion 
of  the  Christian  Church.  The  movement  organized  by  the 
Boxers  in  1900  was  directed  against  Europeans  and  against 
all  Chinese  Christians,  inasmuch  as  these  were  supposed  to 
be  in  sympathy  with  foreigners.  The  Chinese  Christians 
were  in  many  instances  offered  their  lives  if  they  would 
abjure  their  religion,  but  despite  the  cruel  tortures  to  which 
they  were  subjected  comparatively  few  recanted  and  about 
16,000  died  a  martyr's  death.  Of  Europeans  there  were 
killed  135  Anglican  and  Protestant  missionaries  and  53 
children,  35  RC.  priests  and  9  E.C.  sisters.  Had  it  not 
been  for  the  efforts  of  Yiian  Shihkai  and  some  other 
Chinese  viceroys  the  massacres  might  have  spread  over  the 
whole  Chinese  Empire. 

Statistics. 

The  following  table  will  give  some  idea  of  the  rapidity 
with  which  the  AngUcan  and  Protestant  missions  developed 


CHINA  199 

during  the  ten  years  which  followed  the  Boxer  persecu- 
tion : — 


Year. 

^1 

ii 

m 

1 
1 

=1 

^1 

111 

1  = 

it 

1 
1 

1900     .     . 
1910     .     . 

610 
910 

416 

582 

1518 
2347 

162 
251 

79 
114 

2785 
4175 

6,388 
12,082 

204,672 
469,896 

*  Including  wives  of  missionaries. 

The  number  of  Christian  adherents,  apart  from  those 
connected  with  E.G.  missions,  were  in  1860  about  1000  ;  in 
1877,13,000;  in  1890,  37,000;  in  1900, over  200,000  ; 
and  in  1910,  about  470,000. 

At  the  end  of  1913  the  number  of  full  members  of 
Christian  Churches  was  returned  as  235,303,  the  number 
under  Christian  instruction  as  59,106,  and  the  "total 
Christian  constituency"  as  356,209.  The  last  figure  does 
not  include  those  who  are  merely  "  adherents." 

The  following  table  illustrates  the  progress  made  by 
Anglican  and  Protestant  missionary  societies  in  China 
between  1876  and  1913: — 


■^r, 

GB 

c^ 

3r.-aJ 

c  a 

. 

z 

Is 

1 

111 

l<  u  <u 

t^  . 

iln 

s 

c  « 

S"^ 

© 

^  rtfe 

-  ^  -^ 

Year. 

if 

3 

1 

a 

c  2  <u 

ill 

1-^ 

6 

6^ 

m 

6&^ 

n 

5l" 

d 

1876 

473 

73 

511 

90 

290 

5,686 

13,035 

No  returns 

1895 

1324 

252 

1157 

326 

1333 

21,353 

55,093 

12,495 

1905 

3445 

345 

5722 
(including 

lay 
preachers) 

897 

2583 

57,683 

178,2511 

78,528 

1913 

5186 

650 

6851 

2270 

6436 

118,650 

235,303 

356,209 

^  The  returns  for  1905  include  some  baptized  children. 


200  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Comparing  the  progress  of  Anglican  and  Protestant 
missions  in  India  and  China  between  1900  and  1910, 
we  note  that  whilst  the  increase  in  India  was  at  the  rate 
of  45  per  cent,  the  increase  in  China  was  at  the  rate 
of  129  per  cent.  Within  the  memory  of  one  or  two 
missionaries  still  living  the  Christians  connected  with  these 
missions  increased  from  less  than  200  (in  1860)  to 
nearly  half  a  million  (1912).  During  the  same  period 
(1900—10)  the  baptized  Christians  connected  with  the 
Roman  Catholic  missions  increased  from  about  762,000 
to  1,363,000,  the  increase  being  at  the  rate  of  about  70 
per  cent.  As  far  as  we  can  appraise  the  prospect  of 
Christian  missions  in  China  by  the  use  of  missionary 
statistics,  it  appears  to  be  singularly  encouraging.  In  the 
case  of  China,  however,  more  than  in  the  case  of  other 
countries,  we  need  to  remember  that  the  evangelistic  work 
which  is  being  done  in  different  parts  is  very  unequal  in 
character.  A  considerable  number  of  the  missionaries  now 
working  in  China  have  been  sent  there  by  small  local 
associations  in  America  and  have  received  no  training  to 
prepare  them  for  their  work.  The  result  has  been  that 
European  visitors  to  China  have  had  occasion  to  point  out 
that  their  methods  of  work  would  admit  of  great  improve- 
ment, and  that  there  was  reason  to  fear  that  some  of  those 
who  had  been  moved  to  go  forth  as  missionaries  had 
mistaken  their  vocation. 

Nevertheless,  after  making  all  deductions  in  view  of 
the  inefficiency  of  some  missionaries,  and  of  some  of  the 
societies  now  working  in  China,  there  is  no  reasonable 
doubt  that  the  Christianization  of  China  is  rapidly  coming 
within  the  sphere  of  practical  politics.  The  one  thing 
certain  in  regard  to  its  future  is  that  within  a  very  few 
years  the  greater  part  of  its  population  will  come  under 
the  influence  of  Western  education.  It  depends  upon  the 
peoples  of  England  and  America  whether  the  Western 
education,  which  is  about  to  sweep  the  country,  will  tell 
for  or  against  the  spread  of  tlie  Christian  faith,  and  whether 
at  the  close  of  this  century  China  will  be  mainly  Christian 


CHINA  201 

or  mainly  agnostic.  The  peoples  of  China  are  not  instinc- 
tively religious,  as  are  the  peoples  of  India,  and  if  China 
does  not  become  Christian  it  may  long  remain  content 
without  any  form  of  vital  religion.  Very  few  of  the 
Chinese  Christians  belong  to  the  literary  classes.  This  has 
been  largely  due  to  the  fact  that  their  contempt  for 
Western  knowledge  has  led  them  to  despise  what  they 
regarded  as  a  Western  religion.  But,  as  the  reception 
which  Dr.  Mott  received  from  tens  of  thousands  of  Chinese 
students  in  1913  has  shown,  a  great  change  has  come  over 
the  attitude  of  the  literary  classes.^  A  unique  opportunity 
now  exists  for  establishing  Christian  universities  and  for 
developing  higher  education  under  Christian  auspices,  and 
upon  the  use  which  is  made  of  this  opportunity  will  depend 
the  attitude  of  the  learned  classes  towards  the  Christian 
faith.  In  six  years,  1905-11,  the  number  of  students  in 
the  one  province  of  Chihli  rose  from  8000  to  230,000,  and 
what  has  happened  in  this  province  is  happening  through- 
out the  length  and  breadth  of  China.  A  recent  visitor  to 
China  saw  in  course  of  building  the  new  normal  school  at 
Canton,  which  was  rising  in  the  very  same  compound  in 
which  stood  the  ruins  of  the  stalls  used  for  the  old  Chinese 
examinations.  In  this  new  school  800  teachers  are  now 
being  trained.  Yiian  Shihkai,  who  is  now  President,  bore 
emphatic  testimony  to  the  good  work  done  by  Christian 
missionaries  at  the  time  of  the  Boxer  riots,  and  his  sons 
were  educated  at  a  missionary  school  in  China  and  after- 
wards at  a  school  in  England. 


University  Colleges  in  China. 

Boone    University,  which  was  founded  at  Wuchang  in 
1871  and  was  incorporated  (in  the  U.S.A.)  as  a  university 

*  An  equally  remarkable  series  of  meetings  was  held  by  Mr.  Sherwood 
Eddy  in  1914  for  Government  students  and  officials.  In  seven  cities,  the 
meetings  in  which  averaged  an  attendance  of  3000,  there  were  7000 
"enquirers,"  who  included  many  Government  officials  and  scholars.  A 
large  number  of  women  students  have  also  been  reached. 


202  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

in  1909,  had  about  400  students  previous  to  the  Eevolution. 
It  and  St.  John's  College,  Shanghai  (see  p.  191),  are  under 
the  control  of  the  American  Church  Mission. 

The  University  of  JNanking,  which  began  work  in  1910, 
represents  the  union  of  the  educational  work  in  Nanking 
of  the  Presbyterian  Mission,  the  A.M.E.C.  and  the  Foreign 
Christian  Missionary  Society.  It  is  the  property  of  a 
Board  of  Trustees  elected  by  these  societies.  Its  students 
number  about  500. 

Shantung  Christian  University.  This  was  formed  by 
the  English  Baptist  and  American  Presbyterian  Missions. 
The  Anglican  Mission  (S.P.G.)  has  also  a  representative  on 
its  teaching  staff,  and  is  building  a  hostel  for  its  students 
in  attendance  at  the  university.  The  college  of  arts  and 
science  at  Weihsien,  the  normal  and  theological  college  at 
Chingchowfu  and  the  medical  college  at  Chinanfu  are  to  be 
united  in  the  university  buildings  to  be  erected  at  Chinanfu. 
In  the  three  colleges  there  are  about  600  students. 

Peking  University  College  belongs  to  the  A.M.E.C.  and 
has  8 1  students  in  the  "  collegiate  department."  The 
Union  Medical  College,  which  is  supported  by  several 
missionary  societies,  is  uniting  with  this  college  in  order  to 
form  a  university  of  Peking. 

Canton  Christian  College,  which  has  about  200  students, 
represents  the  union  of  several  American  missionary  agencies 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Canton. 

As  a  result  of  the  formation  of  the  West  China 
Christian  Educational  Union  there  has  been  created  the  West 
China  Union  University,  in  which  five  missionary  societies 
participate.  A  site  for  this  university  was  purchased  out- 
side Chengtu  in  1908.  The  various  societies  which  it 
represents  propose  to  establish  colleges  or  hostels  in  which 
their  students  in  attendance  at  the  university  will  reside. 

A  Foochow  Christian  University  has  been  organized  and 
a  constitution  adopted.  It  is  supported  by  the  following 
missionary  societies  :  C.M.S.,  A.M.E.C.,  A.B.C.r.M.,  E.P.M. 
and  L.M.S. 

The  Shansi   University,  which  was  for  ten  years  under 


CHINA  203 

foreign  supervision,  has  not  been  a  help  to  the  cause  of 
missions.  Until  the  recent  Eevolution  it  was  rendered 
practically  impossible  for  Christian  students  to  enter  it. 

An  important  step  towards  Christian  unity  in  China 
was  taken  by  the  National  Conference  which  met  under 
the  chairmanship  of  Dr.  Mott  in  1913.  The  following 
formed  part  of  the  resolutions  passed  by  this  Conference, 
which  represented  nearly  all  the  chief  Anglican  and 
Protestant  missions  in  China  : — 

A.  "  In  order  to  do  all  that  is  possible  to  manifest  the 
unity  which  already  exists  among  all  faithful  Christians  in 
China  and  to  present  ourselves  in  the  face  of  the  great  mass 
of  Chinese  non-Christian  people  as  one  brotherhood  with 
one  common  name,  this  Conference  suggests  as  the  most 
suitable  name  for  this  purpose  .  .  .  The  Christian  Church 
in  China. 

B.  "  As  steps  towards  unity  this  Conference  urges  upon 
the  Churches :  1.  The  uniting  of  Churches  of  similar  ecclesi- 
astical order  planted  in  China  by  different  missions.  2.  The 
organic  union  of  Churches  which  already  enjoy  inter- 
communicatiou    in    any   particular    area,   large   or    small. 

3.  Federation,  local  and  provincial,  of  all  Churches  willing 
to   co-operate  in  the  extension   of   the  Kingdom  of  God. 

4.  The  formation  of  a  National  Council  of  the  Churches." 

The  constitution  of  the  Chung  Hua  Sheng  Kung  Hui 
(see  p.  188)  in  1912  by  the  representatives  of  the  Anglican 
missions  anticipated,  as  far  as  these  missions  were  con- 
cerned, the  proposal  B.  1. 

In  no  part  of  the  great  mission  field  have  medical 
missions  done  so  much  to  break  down  opposition  and  to 
commend  the  Christian  faith  as  in  China.  At  the  end  of 
1913  there  were  300  men  and  135  women  doctors  con- 
nected with  missionary  societies.  In  addition  to  these 
who  are  Europeans  or  Americans,  there  were  94  qualified 
Chinese  doctors  and  over  10,000  Chinese  medical  students. 
There  are  about  264  mission  hospitals  in  China,  and  the 
number  of  in-patients  treated  in  1913  was  126,788  and 
of  out-patients  2,129,774.  (For  a  further  reference  to 
the  development  of  medical  missions  in  China  see  p.  199.) 


204  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Keference  should  be  made  to  the  Schools  for  the  Blind 
which  have  been  started  by  various  missions.  In  Europe 
the  proportion  of  blind  to  seeing  is  about  1  in  1500,  in 
India  it  is  about  1  in  500,  and  in  China  about  1  in  400. 
The  total  number  of  blind  is  about  1,000,000.  Many  of 
the  blind  have  been  taught  to  read  by  the  system  invented 
by  the  Eev.  W.  H.  Murray  of  Peking,  and  industrial  work 
has  been  taught  in  most  of  the  schools. 

Work  amongst  Women.  —  The  various  missionary 
societies  have  been  gradually  extending  and  developing 
their  work  amongst  Chinese  women,  but  there  is  still 
much  to  be  accomplished  in  order  to  bring  it  up  to  the 
level  of  the  work  which  has  been  done  amongst  men. 
The  following  are  extracts  from  the  "  findings "  of  the 
National  Conference  over  which  Dr.  Mott  presided  in 
1913:— 

"  The  present  conditions  present  an  unparalleled  oppor- 
tunity for  widespread  and  aggressive  evangelization.  .  .  . 
There  are  hundreds  of  walled  cities  and  thousands  of  towns 
in  China  in  which  the  women  are  absolutely  unreached  as 
yet.  .  .  .  The  number  of  women  missionaries  is  hopelessly 
inadequate.  .  .  .  We  favour  the  speedy  establishment  of 
more  and  better  primary  schools  for  girls,  especially  in 
country  districts.  .  .  .  We  must  increase  our  educational 
work  in  quantity,  so  that  we  can  provide  the  teachers 
needed  in  missionary  schools  and  respond  to  calls  for  help 
from  non-Christian  schools.  We  must  increase  it  in  quality, 
and  fit  our  graduates  for  college  and  training  schools  to  in- 
vestigate social  and  industrial  problems,  to  study  religious 
questions  and  in  every  way  to  be  leaders  of  Chinese  women 
in  the  regeneration  of  China." 

The  general  outlook  is  certainly  more  encouraging  than 
it  has  been  at  any  previous  time.  Thus  a  C.M.S.  missionary 
in  Mid-China  writes : 

"One  of  the  changes  wrought  in  the  country  by  the 
Eevolution  is  said  to  be  that  while  in  the  past  it  has  always 
been  difficult  to  get  any  one  to  look  after  the  sick,  quite  a 
number  of  educated  women  are  now  desirous  of  undertaking 
the  work.     Five  women,  all  belonging  to  literary  families, 


CHINA  205 

were  under  training  at  Foochow,  and  four  of  them  did  well 
in  an  examination  in  elementary  physiology  and  general 
nursing."  ^ 

Early  in  1914  two  Chinese  women  received  diplomas 
from  the  Union  Medical  College  in  Peking.  They  were 
the  first  women  in  North  China  to  become  qualified  as 
doctors. 

The  importance  of  the  training  of  China's  women,  to 
which  the  "  findings  "  of  the  Conference  bear  witness,  is 
accentuated  by  the  past  history  of  Christian  missions  in 
this  country.  The  failure  of  the  Christian  Church  to 
establish  permanent  Christian  communities  in  China  may 
be  traced,  at  least  in  part,  to  the  failure  of  its  missionaries 
to  influence  the  lives  of  its  women.  Had  the  Nestorians, 
the  Franciscans  or  the  Jesuits  been  able  to  appeal  to 
China's  women  and  to  create  Christian  homes,  it  is  in- 
conceivable that  the  after  results  of  their  work,  carried  on 
during  such  long  periods  and  with  such  apparent  success, 
should  now  be  so  far  to  seek. 

A  Student  Volunteer  Movement  has  been  started,  the 
members  of  which  pledge  themselves  to  prepare  to  enter 
the  Christian  Ministry.  They  are  for  the  most  part 
college  students  who  have  the  prospect  of  good  secular 
positions  with  large  salaries  on  the  completion  of  their 
college  course.  Six  hundred  members  have  already  been 
enrolled  and  100  have  already  begun  their  theological 
training.  In  fifteen  of  the  chief  theological  training 
schools  in  China  there  are  450  Chinese  who  are  preparing 
for  ordination. 

The  total  number  of  Anglican  and  Protestant  foreign 
missionary  workers  in  China  is  about  5200.  This  represents 
one  man  or  woman  worker  to  each  75,000  of  the  Chinese. 

Although  Christian  mission  centres  are  widely 
scattered  throughout  China,  there  are  still  large  districts  in 
which  very  little  work  is  being  carried  on.  The  provinces 
of  Yunnan,  Kwangsi,  Kweichow  and  Kansu  are  largely 
unoccupied  by  representatives  of  any  missionary  society. 
^  ChiTia  Mission  Year  Book,  1914,  p.  193. 


206  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

In  the  provinces  and  dependencies  of  China  there  are 
552  centres  from  which  missionary  work  over  the  sur- 
rounding district  is  organized,  but  in  China  proper,  the 
population  of  the  provinces  and  districts  in  which  hardly 
any  missionary  work  has  as  yet  been  attempted  amounts 
to  40,000,000,  and  beyond  these  there  lie  Mongolia, 
Turkestan  and  Tibet.  In  one  county  in  the  province  of 
Shensi,  which  includes  900  walled  villages,  the  only  non- 
Eoman  missionaries  are  one  man  and  his  wife  belonging 
to  the  C.LM. 

An  Appeal  for  Prayer. — No  event  has  served  to  impress 
the  general  public  with  the  progress  attained  by  mission- 
ary propaganda  in  China  more  than  the  official  request 
which  was  made  by  the  acting  Chinese  Government 
for  the  prayers  of  its  Christian  subjects  on  Sunday, 
April  27,  1913.  A  few  days  prior  to  this  date  tele- 
grams were  sent  to  the  leaders  of  Christian  Churches 
asking  that  special  prayers  should  be  offered  on  behalf  of 
the  Chinese  nation,  and  to  provincial  governors  and  other 
high  officials  directing  them  to  attend  the  Christian 
services.  The  suggestion  apparently  originated  with  the 
Christians,  of  whom  sixty  were  reported  to  have  been 
members  of  the  first  Chinese  parliament,  and  was  perhaps 
adopted  by  the  Government  authorities  partly  in  the  hope 
of  securing  the  goodwill  of  the  nations  of  the  West. 
The  day  of  prayer  was  widely  observed  in  England  and  in 
America  as  well  as  in  China,  and  its  observance  helped  to 
bring  home  to  many  the  rapid  progress  which  Christianity 
in  China  had  made  during  recent  years. 

It  was  a  happy  coincidence  that  within  a  fortnight 
of  the  day  appointed  for  prayer  by  the  Chinese  Govern- 
ment, the  House  of  Commons  in  England  was  officially 
informed  that  the  exportation  of  Indian  opium  to  China, 
which  had  done  so  much  to  retard  missionary  work  in 
China,  had  finally  ceased. 

We  have  not  space  to  do  more  than  allude  to  the 
discussions  which  have  from  time  to  time  been  raised  in 
regard  to  the  attitude  which  missionaries  ought  to  takQ 


CHINA  207 

towards  what  is  usually  described  as  "  ancestor- worship." 
In  deciding  what  attitude  he  ought  to  adopt,  the  missionary 
cannot  afford  to  forget  the  lesson  taught  by  the  experi- 
ence of  the  past.  The  policy  adopted  by  the  E.G.  mission- 
aries in  regard  to  the  maintenance  of  ancestor-worship 
has  been  fraught  with  disaster,  and  has  tended  more  than 
any  other  action  on  their  part  to  produce  a  superficial 
conversion  of  character  which  must  hinder  rather  than 
hasten  the  true  evangelization  of  China.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  missionary  who  knows  anything  of  the  early 
history  of  his  religion  cannot  fail  to  remember  how  helpful 
and  inspiring  memorial  services  for  the  dead  have  been, 
especially  in  countries  where  Christians  have  formed  a 
small  minority  of  the  population,  and  how  incomplete  is 
the  presentation  of  Christianity  which  does  not  lay 
emphasis  upon  the  indissoluble  connection  which  exists 
between  those  who  are  striving  to  live  the  Christ-life 
here  and  those  who  are  with  Christ  in  the  life  into  which 
they  have  passed.  There  is  no  problem  raised  by 
missionary  work  in  the  Far  East  on  which  it  is  more 
difficult  to  formulate  a  definite  policy  and  which  at  the 
same  time  presses  so  urgently  for  a  solution. 

In  trying  to  appraise  the  prospect  of  the  missionary 
appeal  in  China  to-day  we  need  to  take  into  consideration 
the  distinctive  features  of  the  Chinese  character. 

The  writer  of  the  section  of  the  Edinburgh  Conference 
Eeports  which  dealt  with  Christian  Missions  in  China,  after 
summarizing  the  contents  of  the  reports  from  missionaries 
in  the  field,  writes : 

"  While  they  (the  Chinese)  possess  certain  traits  which 
are  inimical  to  the  Gospel,  those  which  promise  most  as 
allies  to  the  propagation  of  truth  are  the  following :  love  of 
peace  and  a  high  regard  for  law;  absence  of  all  caste 
distinctions  and  the  prevalence  of  a  democratic  spirit; 
respect  for  superiors,  whether  in  age,  position  or  intellect ; 
unusual  docility  and  imitativeness ;  domination  by  the 
historic  instinct  to  such  an  extent  that  the  past  is  not  only 
reverenced  but  is  a  wholesome  check  upon  ill-considered 
innovations  in  belief  and  practice ;  a  genius  for  labour,  and 


208  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

thrift  in  making  provision  for  the  future ;  a  mental  capacity 
and  willingness  to  apply  the  mind  unremittingly  to  study 
which  may  one  day  make  them  the  greatest  students  in  the 
world ;  a  perpetual  emphasis  of  reason  .  .  . ;  a  suavity  and 
tact  that  will  meet  any  hard  situation  and  win  unexpected 
victory  from  apparent  defeat ;  a  talent  for  organization 
which  has  made  the  Chinese  past-masters  in  combinations, 
guilds,  and  societies  of  all  sorts;  a  sense  of  responsibility 
which  is  based  on  a  high  ideal  of  the  duties  of  kinship; 
an  economy  which  will  one  day  make  the  most  out  of  every 
Christian  resource ;  and  great  susceptibility  to  the  influence 
of  a  strong  personality,  be  it  the  missionary  or  the  Master 
whom  he  is  trying  to  imitate.  Men  of  such  traits  have 
already  made  superb  preachers  and  teachers,  as  well  as 
most  consistent  Christians."  ^ 

The  author  of  a  recently  published  work  entitled 
Mdthode  de  VApostolat  moderne  en  Chine,  after  a  survey  of 
the  difficulties  which  missionaries  encounter  who  work 
among  the  Chinese,  sums  up  his  impressions  of  the 
Chinese  character  in  words  that  partly  supplement  and 
partly  contradict  the  opinion  which  we  have  just  quoted. 
He  writes : 

"  Les  phenomenes  bien  caracteristiques  de  Faffaiblissement 
de  la  volonte  chez  les  Chinois :  manque  de  caractere,  besoin 
de  solidarite,  versatilite,  pusillanimite,  force  de  I'inertie, 
absence  d'initiative,  suggestibilite  tels  que  nous  venons  de  les 
etudier,  presentent  au  missionaire  justement  preoccupe  de 
la  perseverance  finale  de  ses  Chretiens,  un  bien  douloureux 
probleme.  Car  ce  que  nous  avons  surtout  a  reprocher  dans 
nos  fideles,  n'est  pas  un  manque  de  sincerity  dans  leur  foi, 
mais  cette  absence  d'energie  de  volonte  qui  est  cause  que 
leur  conduite  sera  paienne  ou  chr^tienne,  exacte  ou  relach^e 
d'apr^s  les  cir Constances."  ^ 

Roman  Catholic  Missions  in  China. 

Partly  as  a  result  of  the  suppression  of  the  Jesuit 
Order  and  partly  as  the  result  of  the  closing  of  religious 

1  Edinburgh  Conference  Reports,  i.  p.  85. 

2  Par  R.  P.  Louis  Kervyn  de  la  Congregation  du  cceur  immacule  de  Marie, 
Hong-Kong,  1911,  p.  359. 


CHINA  209 

houses  and  seminaries  which  followed  the  French  Eevolu- 
tion,  the  Christians  of  China  were  almost  entirely  left  to 
their  own  resources.  In  many  provinces  "  the  converts 
left  without  priests  drifted  back  into  paganism,  or  if  they 
kept  the  faith,  were  ill-instructed  and  had  no  sacrament 
but  baptism.  The  Vincentian  (Lazarist)  Fathers,  in  the 
face  of  terrible  trials,  held  on  to  Peking  and  a  few 
other  places,  and  the  re-establishment  of  the  famous  Paris 
Seminary  of  Foreign  Missions  eventually  supplied  a  re- 
inforcement for  other  districts.  The  Spanish  Dominicans 
in  the  south-east,  and  the  Portuguese  priests  at  Macao, 
kept  the  faith  alive  in  these  places."  ^ 

Timkowski,  a  Kussian  official  who  visited  Peking  in 
1805,  wrote: 

"  A  fresh  persecution  was  commenced  against  the  Chris- 
tians. They  endeavoured  to  oblige  them  to  trample  upon 
the  cross  and  to  abjure  their  errors ;  they  who  refused  were 
threatened  with  death.  At  Peking  many  thousand  persons 
were  discovered  who  had  embraced  the  Christian  religion,  even 
among  the  members  of  the  imperial  family  and  mandarins."  ^ 

In  1815  Bishop  Dufresse  was  led  to  execution  at  the 
head  of  32  confessors.  In  1818  many  Christians  were 
exiled  to  the  wilds  of  Tartary.  In  1 8 1 6  a  Franciscan  Father 
and  4  Chinese  priests  were  martyred  in  Szechwan.  Never- 
theless in  the  same  province  and  at  the  same  time  a  priest 
was  able  to  report  that  he  had  baptized  1006  adults  and 
given  the  Holy  Communion  to  79,000  persons  in  one  year. 

In  the  Salle  des  Martyrs  belonging  to  the  Paris 
Seminary  of  Missions  are  preserved  relics  of  the  martyrs 
of  China  and  Corea.  One  of  these  is  the  chalice  belonging 
to  the  Bishop  Boric,  who  was  tied  to  a  stake  and  slowly  cut 
to  pieces  in  Central  China.  Every  priest  trained  in  this 
seminary  who  is  about  to  leave  for  China  is  allowed  to 
say  a  Mass  at  which  he  uses  this  chalice. 

^  The  Missions  of  China,  by  A.  H.  Atteridge,  p.  12.  Published  by  the 
Catholic  Truth  Society. 

2  See  "Roman  Catholic  Missions,"  by  R.  Eubank,  The  East  and  The 
West,  January  1905. 

14 


210  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  revival  of  Eoman  Catholic  missions  in  China 
dates  from  1830.  These  missions  are  now  to  be  found 
in  every  province  in  China  and  on  the  borders  of  Tibet, 
and  in  1850  the  number  of  baptized  Christians  was 
estimated  at  330,000.  In  1881  they  numbered  470,000; 
thirty  years  later,  i.e.  in  1911,  these  had  increased  to 
1,363,000,  (Eapid  as  this  rate  of  increase  has  been,  it 
has,  however,  been  less  rapid  than  the  increase  of  the  non- 
Eoman  missions  throughout  China,  see  p.  200.)  These  were 
grouped  in  47  dioceses  or  vicariates.  There  were  1365 
European  and  721  Chinese  priests  and  1215  Chinese 
students  for  the  priesthood.  There  were  also  247 
European  and  86  Chinese  lay-Brothers  in  religious  houses 
or  in  "teaching  congregations,"  and  2172  nuns,  of  whom 
1429  were  Chinese  women. 

According  to  Die  Katholischen  Missionen  of  June 
1913,  the  total  number  of  converts  connected  with 
E.C.  missions  in  China  was  1,421,258,  in  addition  to 
448,220  catechumens.  The  three  tasks  which  are  put 
forward  as  being  most  pressing  are :  the  development  of 
education ;  the  securing  of  a  more  powerful  political  unity 
and  influence ;  and  the  formation  of  strong  religious  or- 
ganizations within  the  Church. 

The  E.C.  missions  have  for  many  years  supported 
orphanages  in  different  parts  of  China  for  the  care  of 
destitute  children.  These  number  260,  and  a  considerable 
proportion  of  the  baptisms  which  take  place  annually  are 
of  infant  children  in  these  homes.  As  a  general  rule  the 
Chinese  priests  are  members  of  families  which  have  been 
Christian  for  at  least  three  generations. 

The  E.C.  priests  for  the  most  part  live  simple,  self- 
denying  lives,  and  live  and  die  amongst  their  converts. 
On  the  other  hand,  their  bishops  claimed  the  rank 
and  dignity  of  mandarins.  This  claim,  and  the  further 
claim  to  interfere  in  Chinese  lawsuits  wherever  a  E.C. 
Christian  was  concerned,  often  gave  rise  to  hostility 
and  persecution  on  the  part  of  Chinese  officials,  and  was 
one   of   the    causes   of   the    Boxer  insurrection    in    1900, 


CHINA  211 

When,  in  1898,  the  claim  to  rank  with  a  governor  of  a 
Chinese  province  and  to  travel  in  a  green  sedan  chair 
with  a  retinue  following  was  eventually  allowed  by  the 
Chinese  Government,  the  same  honours  were  offered  to 
the  Anglican  bishops,  but  were  declined.^  The  right 
to  assume  this  rank  has  been  disallowed  by  the  present 
Chinese  Government. 

At  the  close  of  the  Boxer  riots,  in  which  54  E.C. 
missionaries  lost  their  lives,  the  E.C.  missionaries  claimed 
£1,500,000  from  the  Chinese  Government  as  an 
indemnity. 

The  following  Orders  and  foreign  missionary  societies 
are  at  work  in  China:  Jesuits  in  Chihli  and  Kiangnan ; 
Lazarists  in  Chihli,  Kiangsi  and  Chekiang;  Franciscans 
in  Shensi,  Shansi,  Shantung,  Hupei  and  Hunan ;  Augus- 
tinians  in  Hunan ;  Spanish  Dominicans  in  Foochow  and  in 
Amoy ;  Milan  F.M.S.  in  Honan  and  in  Hong-Kong ;  Paris 
F.M.S.  in  Manchuria,  Kweichow,  Szechwan,  Kienchang, 
Yunnan,  Kwantung,  Kwangsi  and  Tibet ;  Scheutvelt  Belgian 
F.M.S.  in  Mongolia  and  Kansu ;  Eome  F.M.S.  in  Shensi ; 
Steyl  German  F.M.S.  in  Shantung;  Parma  F.M.S.  in 
W.  Honan ;  and  Spanish  Augustinians  in  N.  Hunan. 

In  Tonking,  where  work  was  begun  in  1678,  the 
E.C.  Church  has  7  vicariates.  The  Christians,  including 
Europeans,  number  711,000.  The  work  is  carried  on  by 
230  priests  and  is  supported  by  the  Paris  F.M.  Society. 
In  Cochin  China,  where  the  work  dates  from  1659,  there 
are  3  vicariates,  164  priests  and  180,000  Christians.  In 
Cambodia,  where  work  was  begun  in  1850,  there  are 
45,000  Christians  and  48  priests. 

The  Russian  Mission. 

The  Chinese  Mission  of  the  Eussian  Orthodox  Church 
was  the  result  of  the  capture  of  some  Eussians,  one  of 
whom  was  a  priest,  by  a  Chinese  force  at  the  end  of  the 

^  See  "  R.C.  Mission  Work  in  China,"  by  Clement  Allen,  formerly  Consul 
at  Foochow,  The  East  and  The  West,  April  1905. 


212  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

seventeenth  century.  In  1716  a  missionary  party,  in- 
cluding 2  priests,  a  deacon,  and  7  students,  reached 
Peking.  Though  the  mission  has  remained  small,  its 
members  have  translated  the  Bible  and  other  Christian 
books  into  Chinese.  Of  the  700  Christians  attached  to 
the  mission  in  1900,  400  are  said  to  have  been  killed 
during  the  Boxer  insurrection.  The  work  has  since  been 
resumed  and  has  a  Russian  Bishop  as  its  head. 

Chinese  Turkestan. 

Chinese  Turkestan  or  Sinkiang  contains  over  550,000 
square  miles,  but  a  population  of  only  1,250,000.  It 
is  the  meeting-point  of  many  races,  Kalmuks,  Mongolians, 
Tangus,  Tartars,  Manchus,  Chinese  and  Turkis.  The 
majority  of  its  inhabitants  are  Moslems.  In  the  extreme 
west  the  Swedish  mission  have  centres  at  Kashgar  and 
Yarkand,  and  at  the  capital,  Urumchi,  the  C.I.M.  has 
had  a  station  since   1905. 


Manchuria. 

The  Presbyterian  Church  of  Ireland  began  work  at 
Newchwang  in  1869.  In  1872  the  Eev.  John  Ross 
arrived,  as  a  pioneer  of  the  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland 
Mission,  and  ten  years  later  he  and  Dr.  Christie  established 
the  medical  mission  at  Moukden,  which  has  exercised  a 
far-reaching  influence. 

In  1891  the  two  Presbyterian  missions  united  in 
order  to  form  a  native  Manchurian  Church. 

The  Danish  Lutheran  Mission,  which  began  work  in 
1895,  has  stations  at  Port  Arthur  and  in  the  surrounding 
district. 

The  missionaries  belonging  to  the  Scotch,  Irish  and 
Danish  missions,  together  with  the  B.  and  F.  B.  S.  and 
Y.M.C.A.  representatives,  number  153,  including  wives. 
These  occupy  26  stations.  The  number  of  baptized 
Christians  (1913)  is   26,024   and  of  catechumens  7000. 


CHINA  213 

Though  the  more  visible  results  of  the  great  Eevival  which 
took  place  in  1908  have  passed  away,  the  spiritual  impetus 
then  received  has  been  lasting,  and  "  a  new  vision  of  sin 
and  holiness  remains  as  a  ground  of  appeal."  ^ 

There  are  12  mission  hospitals  and  19  doctors  in 
Manchuria,  and  the  number  of  out-patients  in  1913  was 
about  150,000.  At  the  Moukden  Medical  College 
50  Chinese  medical  students  are  being  trained. 

In  Manchuria,  to  a  greater  extent  than  in  almost  any 
section  of  the  mission  field,  the  growth  of  the  Church  has 
resulted  from  the  efforts  made  by  the  converts  to  influence 
their  friends  and  neighbours.  As  an  illustration  of  this 
statement  we  may  quote  a  case  described  thus  by  Dr.  Christie 
of  the  Moukden  hospital : — 

"  A  patient  came  to  the  Moukden  hospital  many  years 
ago.  When  admitted  he  had  never  heard  the  gospel,  but 
before  he  left  he  had  a  clear  knowledge  of  Christian  truth 
and  showed  an  intense  desire  to  make  it  known  to  others. 
For  many  years  he  witnessed  for  Christ,  most  of  the  time 
without  salary  of  any  kind  and  under  no  control  but  that  of 
his  heavenly  Master.  The  missionary  who  had  charge  of 
the  district  where  he  laboured  till  his  martyrdom  by  the 
Boxers,  tells  us  that  he  was  a  direct  means  of  leading  at 
least  2000  souls  into  the  fold  of  Christ."  2 

The  Report  of  the  U.F.C.  of  Scotland  presented  in 
1914,  referring  to  the  colleges  supported  by  this  mission 
at  Moukden,  says,  these  colleges  "  thrive  amazingly  and 
give  promise  of  providing  the  whole  of  Manchuria  with 
adequately  trained  teachers,  pastors  and  doctors." 

The  E.C.  missions  in  Manchuria  date  from  the  seven- 
teenth century.  When  the  first  Bishop  arrived  in  1840 
he  found  a  scattered  Christian  community  of  over  3000 
members,  who  were  for  the  most  part  immigrants  from 
China.  By  1891  these  had  increased  to  13,000.  During 
the  Boxer  riots  the  Bishop  of  Moukden,  his  clergy  and 
most  of  his  congregation,  600  in  all,  were  massacred. 

1  China  Mission  Year  Book,  1914,  p.  421. 

'  Edinburgh  Missionary  Conference  Report,  i.  334  f. 


214  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Mongolia. 

Mongolia,  the  largest  dependency  of  China,  is  nearly 
as  large  as  the  eighteen  provinces  of  China  put  together. 
Its  population,  however,  hardly  exceeds  3,000,000,  the 
great  majority  of  whom  are  Buddhists. 

The  most  extensive  work  is  that  done  by  the  B.C.  Church, 
which  has  a  chain  of  stations  near  the  Chinese  border,  at 
several  of  which  attempts  are  made  to  reach  Mongols.  At 
Barin,  north  of  Jehol,  and  at  a  station  in  the  Ordos  country, 
there  are  Mongol  congregations  under  priests  who  speak 
Mongolian.  The  converts  number  several  hundreds  in 
all.  The  K.C.  Church  has  three  bishops  and  reports 
69,000  converts  in  Mongolia.  They  have  stations  at 
Pakou,  Tatzuk'ou,  Hata,  and  a  few  other  places,  and  in 
the  far  north  at  Maoshantung.  Only  a  very  small 
proportion  of  the  converts  are  Mongols,  the  majority  of 
the  remainder  being  Chinese.  In  The  Catholic  Church  in 
China,  by  Father  Wolferstan,  the  Christian  community  in 
Mongolia  is  returned  as  consisting  of  "  Chinese  Christians." 
J.  Hedley,  the  author  of  Tramps  in  Dark  Mongolia, 
writes : 

The  devotion  of  the  RC.  missionaries  "is  most  praise- 
worthy, and  so  far  as  I  could  learn  the  conduct  of  their 
work  of  a  fine  character.  .  .  .  They  have  a  practice  of 
insisting  on  a  whole  family  submitting  to  baptism,  when 
a  man  seeks  to  enter  their  Church,  with  the  twofold  result 
of  swelling  numbers  much  faster  than  can  be  done  by  any 
Protestant  mission,  and  of  having  within  their  Church  a 
large  percentage  of  uninformed  adherents."  ^ 

Eeferring  to  the  difficulties  which  confront  the 
Christian  missionary  in  Mongolia  the  same  author  writes : 

"  This  colossal  system  of  Lamaism  is  the  most  effective 
obstacle  to  the  Christian  missionary.  .  .  .  The  attempt  to 
evangelize  Mongolia  presents  one  of  the  greatest  problems 
that  faces  Christian  enterprise  to-day.  .  .  .  Hum^anly 
speaking  it  is  impossible,  an  absolute  impossibility,  for  any 

1  P.  363. 


CHINA  215 

Mongol  to  avow  himself  a  Christian  and  remain  among  his 
own  people  and  clan.  To  an  extent  undreamed  of  in  China 
the  priest  terrorizes  over  the  layman,  and  a  profession  of 
adherence  to  any  other  faith  would  inevitably  mean  a 
system  of  persecution  that  would  wear  out  the  unfortunate 
man's  nerves,  if  he  did  not  sicken  and  die  from  some 
mysterious  disease.  .  .  .  The  only  hope  for  the  Mongol  who 
wishes  to  attach  himself  to  the  Christian  faith  would  be 
to  remove  far  away  from  the  influence  and  association  of 
the  people  among  whom  he  has  been  reared."  ^ 

MoTigolian  Bible. — In  1827  two  Buriats  reached  St. 
Petersburg  having  been  sent  from  the  head  Lama  of 
Mongolia  to  request  that  part  of  the  N.T.  might  be 
translated  into  Mongolian.  They  had  seen  a  copy  of  a 
N.T.  in  Kalmuck.  The  L.M.S.  sent  two  representatives 
to  Irkutsk,  and  after  many  years  of  work  the  whole  Bible 
was  translated  into  Mongolian.  No  actual  attempt  to 
evangelize  the  Mongols  was,  however,  made  till  the  coming 
of  James  Gilmour  in  1870. 

James  Gilmour. — Of  the  missionaries  who  worked  in 
the  Far  East  during  the  nineteenth  century,  he  was  one 
of  the  most  remarkable.  Although  his  work  in  Mongolia 
(1870-91)  did  not  result  in  a  single  baptism,  his  life 
and  labours  have  been  an  inspiration  to  very  many. 
A  reviewer  of  his  book.  Among  the  Mongols,  in  the 
Spectator  has  well  expressed  the  difficulties  under  which 
his  work  was  carried  on.     He  wrote : 

"  Mr.  Gilmour  .  .  .  quitted  Peking  for  Mongolia  on  an 
impulse  to  teach  Christ  to  Tartars.  He  could  not  ride,  he 
did  not  know  Mongohan,  he  had  an  objection  to  carry  arms 
and  he  had  no  special  fitness  ...  for  the  work.  Neverthe- 
less he  went  and  stayed  years,  living  on  half-frozen  prairies 
and  deserts  under  open  tents  on  fat  mutton,  sheeps'  tails 
particularly,  tea  and  boiled  millet,  eating  only  once  a 
day  because  Mongols  do,  and  in  all  things,  except  lying, 
stealing  and  prurient  talk,  making  himself  a  lama.  As 
he  could  not  ride,  he  rode  for  a  month  over  600  miles 
of  dangerous  desert,  where  the  rats  undermine  the  grass, 
and  at  the  end  found  that  the  difficulty  had  disappeared 

*  Tramps  in  Dark  Mongolia,  p.  361  f. 


216  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

for  ever.  As  he  could  not  talk,  he  *  boarded  out '  with  a 
lama,  listened  and  questioned,  and  questioned  and  listened, 
till  he  knew  Mongolian  as  Mongols  know  it.  .  .  .  If  ever 
on  earth  there  lived  a  man  who  kept  the  law  of  Christ 
and  could  give  proofs  of  it,  and  be  absolutely  unconscious 
that  he  was  giving  them,  it  is  this  man  whom  the  Mongols 
he  lived  among  called  '  our  Gilmour.'  He  wanted,  naturally 
enough,  sometimes  to  meditate  away  from  his  hosts,  and 
sometimes  to  take  long  walks,  and  sometimes  to  geologize, 
but  he  found  all  these  things  roused  suspicion — for  why 
should  a  stranger  want  to  be  alone ;  might  it  not  be  *  to 
steal  away  the  luck  of  the  land '  ? — and  as  a  suspected 
missionary  is  a  useless  missionary,  Mr.  Gilmour  gave  them 
all  up,  and  sat  endlessly  in  tents,  among  lamas.  And  he 
says  incidentally  that  his  fault  is  impatience,  a  dislike  to 
be  kept  waiting."  ^ 

The  work  of  which  Gilmour  laid  the  foundation  was 
not  eventually  to  be  developed  by  the  L.M.S.,  as  in  1901 
it  was  handed  over  to  the  care  of  the  Irish  Presbyterian 
Mission.  This  Mission  has  mission  stations  at  Sinminfu 
and  Fakumen  in  Manchuria,  from  which  some  work 
amongst  Mongols  is  carried  on.  The  station  where 
Gilmour  worked  during  the  latter  part  of  his  life  in 
Mongolia,  Ch'aoyang,  has  now  been  handed  over  to  a 
mission  supported  by  the  "  Brethren,"  who  have  stations 
in  N.E.  Chihli  which  are  in  touch  with  Mongols.  The 
Scandinavian  Alliance  Mission  has  a  small  agricultural 
mission  station  at  Patsibolong,  where  40  or  50  Mongols 
are  at  work,  several  of  whom  have  been  baptized.  There 
is  a  small  Swedish  Mongol  mission  at  Hallong  Osso,  85 
miles  north  of  Kalgan.  The  Canadian  Pentecostal  Move- 
ment has  sent  six  missionaries  also  to  this  place. 


Tibet. 

It  has  often  been  pointed  out  that  much  of  the  ritual 
of  the  lamas  of  Tibet,  including  the  use  of  the  cross,  the 
mitre,  censers,  the  dalmatica,  the  cope,  etc.,  is  so  closely 

1  The  Story  of  the  L.M.S.,  p.  384  f. 


CHINA  217 

similar  to  that  which  has  long  been  in  use  in  sections  of 
the  Catholic  Church  that  it  is  practically  certain  that  they 
have  come  from  Christian  sources.  Father  Hue  conjectured 
that  these  are  to  be  traced  to  the  influence  of  Franciscan 
missionaries  who  were  working  in  China  in  the  fourteenth 
century.  It  is  not  inconceivable  that  some  of  the  Nestorian 
missionaries  of  a  much  earlier  date  may  have  visited  Tibet. 
In  1325  Friar  Odoric  made  a  journey  from  N.W.  China 
through  Tibet  and  resided  for  some  time  in  Lhasa.  In 
1661  Fathers  Griiber  and  Dorville,  and  in  1716  Fathers 
Desideri  and  Freyre,  made  missionary  tours  in  Tibet,  and 
the  latter  resided  in  Lhasa  for  thirteen  years.  In  1719  a 
Capuchin  Friar  named  Francisco  della  Penna,  with  twelve 
companions,  began  a  mission  in  Lhasa  which  was  continued 
till  1760.1 

The  Tibetans  themselves  have  a  tradition  that  a  white 
lama  from  the  far  west  visited  Tibet  long  ago  and  in- 
structed the  lamas  of  Tibet  in  the  doctrines  of  the  West. 
It  is,  however,  more  probable  that  to  some  of  the  mission- 
aries referred  to  above  should  be  ascribed  the  resemblances 
which  can  be  traced  to-day  between  the  Tibetan  and 
Christian  religious  customs. 

No  success  has  been  attained  in  establishing  mission 
stations  in  Tibet  despite  the  many  attempts  which  have 
been  made.  The  Moravians  have  long  had  representatives 
at  Leh  in  Kashmir,  and  have  four  stations  in  the  Indian 
frontier  states.  The  C.  of  S.  Mission  and  the  Scandinavian 
Alliance  have  several  similar  stations  on  the  Indian  side. 
On  the  Chinese  side,  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance 
started  work  at  Taochow  in  Kansu  in  1895,  the  C.I.M. 
started  at  Tatsienlu  in  Szechwan  in  1897,  and  later  on  the 
Foreign  Christian  Mission  started  in  the  same  place. 
From  these  centres  itinerations  have  been  made,  and  many 
thousands  of  portions  of  Scripture  have  been  distributed. 
About  twenty  Tibetans  have  been  baptized.  On  the  Chinese 
border  there  are  nine  missionaries  who  speak  the  Tibetan 
language. 

1  See  JVith  the  Tibetans  in  Tent  and  Temple,  by  S.  C.  Rijnliart,  p.  108. 


218  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  B.C.  Church  has  a  mission  at  Tatsienlu  at  which 
a  Bishop  and  22  European  priests  are  stationed.  The 
baptized  Christians,  who  number  2683,  include  a  few 
Tibetans.     The  work  is  supported  by  the  Paris  F.M. 

There  are  also  mission  stations  at  Batang,  Atuntsu,  Tseku 
and  Weihsi  in  the  provinces  of  Szechwan  and  Yunnan,  in 
connection  with  which  efforts  are  made  to  reach  Tibetans. 


VIII. 

JAPAN. 

We     have    already     referred     to     the     influence    which 
Christian  teaching  probably  exerted   upon  the  Buddhism 
which  was  introduced  into    China  from    India  and    from 
which  Japanese  Buddhism  was  derived.     Professor  Lloyd 
of    Tokyo  believed  that   there  was  so  much   in    common 
between  the  Amida  sects  of  Buddhists  and  Christians  that 
Christian   missionaries  ought  to   be  encouraged    to    study 
their  writings,  in  the  hope  that  a  sympathetic  understanding 
of  their  teaching  might  enable  them  to  make  an  effective 
appeal  on  behalf  of  the  Christian  faith.     In  considering 
the    rapid  spread  of  Christianity  at  the  time  of  its  first 
introduction  into  Japan,  it  is  well  to  bear  in  mind  the  fact 
that  the  teachings  of  the  Amida  sects  had  familiarized  the 
Japanese  with  the  doctrine  of  a  divine  saviour,  through 
faith  in  whose  name   entrance  into  paradise  could  alone 
be  obtained.      The  acceptance  of  this  doctrine  may  partly 
account  for  the  rapid  spread  of  the  Jesuit  missions,  and  is 
likely  to  affect  the  future  history  of  Christianity  in  Japan. 
The  first    Christian  who  is  reported  to  have    visited 
Japan  was  a  Nestorian  physician,  whose  Japanese  name 
was  Kimitsu   and  who  was  present  at  the   court   of   the 
Emperor  Shomu,  724-748  a.d.     His  consort,  the  Empress 
Komyo,  bore  the  title  "  Light  and  Illumination,"  which  was 
the  official  name  by  which  the  Christian  faith  was  known 
in  China  at  that    time.     She    is    described    by  Japanese 
writers  as  a  great  saint  and  as  one  by  whom  miracles  of 
healing  were  wrought.     It  is  possible  to  suppose  that  she 
had  become  a  Christian  under  the  influence  of  Eimitsu. 

219 


220  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

There  is  no  further  trace  of  the  existence  of  Christians 
in  Japan  till  the  day  (August  15,  1549)  when  Francis 
Xavier  and  his  two  companions,  Father  Cosmo  Torres  and 
Brother  Juan  Fernandez,  landed  at  Kagoshima  in  the 
province  of  Satsuma.  The  mission  to  Japan  was  under- 
taken at  the  suggestion  of  a  Japanese  named  Anjiro,  who 
had  been  converted  to  Christianity  at  Goa  and  who  ac- 
companied the  Jesuit  missionaries  to  Japan  and  acted  for 
awhile  as  their  interpreter.  When  the  missionaries  left 
Kagoshima  a  year  later  they  left  Anjiro  in  charge  of  150 
baptized  Christians.  The  methods  adopted  for  effecting 
the  conversion  of  the  Japanese  were  similar  to  those 
adopted  by  Xavier  in  India,  to  which  reference  has 
already  been  made.  Baptism  was  administered  as  a 
general  rule  before  those  desirous  of  receiving  it  had  gained 
any  clear  appreciation  of  the  meaning  of  the  Christian 
faith.  Thus  in  a  letter  written  by  Xavier  from  Hirado, 
where  he  stayed  for  ten  days  after  leaving  Kagoshima,  we 
read :  "  The  lord  of  that  country  received  us  with  much 
affection  and  kindness.  In  a  few  days  about  a  hundred 
persons  became  Christians,  thanks  to  what  was  preached 
to  them  by  Brother  Juan  Fernandez,  who  already  knew 
how  to  speak  passably  well,  and  to  the  book  translated 
into  the  Japanese  language,  which  we  read  to  them." 

It  is  interesting  to  note,  in  view  of  the  late  Professor 
Lloyd's  investigations,  that  some  of  the  Buddhist  priests 
belonging  to  the  Shingon  sect  professed  to  find  a  great 
resemblance  between  the  Jesuit  teaching  in  regard  to  the 
Christian  Trinity  and  their  own  beliefs.  The  feeling  of 
the  Buddhist  priests  was  not,  however,  reciprocated  by 
Xavier,  as  Father  Froez  wrote  in  1586:  "  They  should 
recognize  that  the  teaching  of  the  Shingon  sect,  like  that 
of  the  others,  was  only  an  invention  of  devils  and  a  tissue 
of  falsehoods."  The  visit  of  the  missionaries  to  Kyoto  (in 
January  1551)  where  they  had  hoped  to  have  obtained  an 
audience  with  the  Mikado,  proved  unsuccessful,  and  they 
then  retired  to  Yamaguchi,  from  which  Xavier  wrote :  "  In 
two  months  at  least  500  persons  have  become  Christians,  and 


JAPAN  221 

the  number  is  daily  increasing."     After  a  stay  of  twenty- 
seven  months  in  Japan,  Xavier  sailed  on  November 20, 1551, 
for  India,  whence  he  sailed  again  for  China,  off  the  coast  of 
which  (in  the  island  of  Sanchian)  he  died  in  November  1552. 
Although  his  name  has  been  completely  overshadowed 
by  that  of  Xavier,  to  Juan  Fernandez   is    due  the  chief 
credit  for  the  initial  successes  of  the  Jesuit  missionaries  in 
Japan.     "  No  one,"  says  Dr.  Otis  Gary,  "  deserves  so  much 
as  he  to  be  called  the  founder  of  the  early  Japanese  Church." 
Fernandez  had  been  a  rich  silk  merchant  in  Cordova,  and 
on  joining  the  Society  of  Jesus  had  refused  the  honour  of 
the  priesthood  and  had  preferred  to  labour  as  a  humble 
layman.     Xavier  never  learned  to  speak  Japanese  and  had 
to  rely  entirely  upon  interpreters,  whereas  Fernandez  soon 
learned  to  speak  and  preach  with  fluency.     Soon  after  the 
departure   of    Xavier,  difficulties    arose   which    tended   to 
become  more  and  more  political.     The  Portuguese  Jesuits 
were  followed  by  Dominicans  and  Franciscans,  who  were  for 
the  most  part  Spaniards,  and  the  Dutch  and  other  traders, 
who  began  to  increase  in  number  and  in  influence,  enter- 
tained no  good  feelings  towards  any  of  the  missionaries. 
If  the  policy  of  the  missionaries  had  been  to  estabhsh  a 
Japanese  Church  which  could  have  been  independent  of 
foreign  ecclesiastics  or  princes,  all  might  have  gone  well 
and  Japan  might  long  since  have  been  a  Christian  country, 
but  to  tell  the  Japanese  that  to  become  Christians  was  to 
profess  allegiance  to  an  Italian  Pope,  or  to  connect  Chris- 
tianity in  any  way,  however  indirectly,  with  the  encourage- 
ment of  European  trade,  was    to    build    a   Church  upon 
foundations  which  could  not  endure. 

The  story  of  the  Pioman  Catholic  Church  in  Japan 
affords  an  object-lesson  on  the  largest  scale  of  the  disastrous 
results  which  attend  the  adoption  of  political  methods  for 
spreading  the  Christian  faith.  Within  thirty  years  of  the 
departure  of  Xavier  the  number  of  Christians  in  Japan  is 
said  to  have  risen  to   600,000,^  who  were  mostly  to  be 

i  In  a  letter,  however,  written  by  Bishop  Cerqueirain  1603  he  asserts  that 
the  total  number  of  Christians  prior  to  1600  was  between  200,000  and  300,000. 


222  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

found  in  Nagasaki  and  the  surrounding  districts.     Nagasaki 
had  become  simultaneously  a  Christian  city  and  the  centre 
of  the    Portuguese    trade    with    Japan.       The    spread   of 
Christianity  had  been   in   part    due   to  the   assistance  of 
Nobunaga,   a    military   dictator    in    Japan,   who    did    not 
himself  become  a  Christian,  but  who  supported  the  Chris- 
tians  against  his  personal  enemies,  who  were  Buddhists. 
He    was    killed    in    battle    in    1582.       After    his    death 
Hideyoshi,  who  became  the  real  ruler  of  Japan,  began  to 
show  disfavour  towards   the   rapidly  increasing  Christian 
population,  and  in   1587   he  issued  an  edict  ordering  all 
missionaries  to  leave  Japan  within  twenty  days.     The  edict 
was  not  strictly  enforced,  but  for  the  next  fourteen  years 
the  spread   of  Christianity  was    checked  by  intermittent 
persecutions.     In  1596   the  captain  of  a  Spanish  galleon 
which  had    been  wrecked    at    Urado,  in   explaining  to  a 
Japanese  official  the  significance  of  a  map  that  he  pro- 
duced, said :  "  The  kings  of  Spain  begin  by  sending  out 
teachers    of    our    religion,    and    when    these    have    made 
sufficient   progress   in  gaining   the   hearts   of   the   people, 
troops  are  dispatched  who  unite  with  the  new  Christians 
in  bringing  about  the  conquest  of  the  desired  territory." 
These  words  were  immediately  reported  to  Hideyoshi  and 
did  much    to   confirm    him   in    his   hostility  towards  the 
missionaries.     His  dislike  of  the  Christians  was,  moreover, 
confirmed    by  the    accusations  of    perfidy  and    disloyalty 
which  the  Franciscans    and    Jesuits    continued    to    make 
against  each  other.     Early  in  1597  he  commenced  to  take 
active  measures  against  the  Christians,  and  on  February  5 
there  were  crucified  at  Nagasaki  6  Franciscans,  3  Japanese 
who  were  members  of  the    Jesuit    Order,  and    17   other 
converts.     Early  in   1598,   137   Christian  churches  were 
destroyed  and  a  large  proportion  of  the  Jesuit  missionaries 
were    driven    out    of    the    country.       Hideyoshi    died    in 
September   1598.     During  the  civil  war  which  followed 
his  death  three  Christian  Daimyos,  who  were  leaders  of  the 
defeated  party,  were  killed.     leyasu,  who  now  became  the 
military  ruler  of  Japan,  was  at  first  disposed  to  tolerate 


JAPAN  223 

the  Christians,  but  in  1603  the  persecution  of  them  recom- 
menced. It  did  not,  however,  become  at  all  severe  till 
1613,  when  three  prominent  Christians  together  with 
their  wives  and  families  were  burned  to  death  at  Arima. 
As  illustrating  the  superb  courage  of  Japanese  Christian 
children,  we  may  note  that  one  of  these  who  was  con- 
demned to  be  burnt  to  death  as  a  Christian,  when  the 
cords  that  bound  him  to  the  stake  had  burnt  away,  went 
to  his  mother,  who  said  to  him,  "  Look  up  to  heaven." 
He  died  whilst  still  clinging  to  his  mother.  Truly  the 
Japanese  Christians  of  to-day  have  reason  to  thank  God 
for  their  Christian  martyrs.  To  them  no  less  than  to 
their  sisters  in  the  West  could  the  words  attributed  by 
Browning  to  St.  John  be  literally  applied : 

"  What  little  child, 
What  tender  woman  that  had  seen  no  least 
Of  all  my  sights,  but  barely  heard  them  told, 
Who  did  not  clasp  the  cross  with  a  light  laugh, 
Or  wrapt  the  burning  robe  round,  thanking  God?" 

In  1614,  300  persons,  including  a  large  proportion  of 
the  foreign  missionaries,  were  shipped  out  of  Japan,  and  for 
the  next  twenty-four  years  the  Christians  were  subjected  to 
tortures  and  persecutions  which  throw  into  the  shade  all 
the  cruelties  practised  against  Christians  under  the  Eoman 
Empire.  On  the  capture  of  the  castle  of  Shimabara,  where 
the  Christians  had  endeavoured  to  defend  themselves  in 
1638,  17,000  Christians  were  put  to  death. 

In  the  following  year  an  Italian  Jesuit  (Porro)  was 
burned  alive  together  with  all  the  inhabitants  of  the 
village  in  which  he  was  found.  Soon  after  this  all  visible 
signs  of  Christianity  disappeared  from  Japan.  As  late  as 
1666  some  Japanese  who  had  escaped  to  Siam  reported 
that  in  the  previous  year  370  Christians  had  been  put  to 
death  in  Japan.  In  1640,  4  Portuguese  envoys,  together 
with  the  57  other  persons  who  sailed  with  them  in  the 
same  ship,  were  beheaded  on  their  arrival  in  Japan.  A 
notice-board  which  was  erected  near  the  spot  where  the 
heads  were  exposed  bore  the  inscription : 


224  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

"  Thus  is  it  that  hereafter  shall  be  punished  with  death 
all  those  coming  to  this  Empire  from  Portugal,  whether 
they  be  ambassadors  or  common  sailors,  and  even  though 
it  be  through  mistaking  the  way  or  because  of  a  tempest 
that  they  come :  yea,  every  such  person  shall  perish,  even 
though  he  be  the  King  of  Portugal,  or  Buddha,  or  a 
Japanese  god,  or  the  Christians'  God  Himself,  yea  all 
shall  die."  1 

Five  Jesuit  priests  and  three  other  companions  who 
visited  Japan  in  1642  were  put  to  death  with  torture,  and 
five  others  who  followed  them  a  year  later  met  the  same 
fate.2 

In  1708  Father  Sidotti  landed  in  Japan.  He  was 
imprisoned  for  seven  years  and  died  in  1715.  During  the 
next  century  and  a  half  Japan  was  so  closely  barred 
against  foreigners  that  few  tidings  reached  the  outer  world. 
On  two  or  three  occasions  Japanese  who  landed  in  the 
Philippine  Islands,  or  at  Macao,  described  certain  Japanese 
families  as  continuing  to  preserve  Christian  traditions ;  and 
in  1821,  17  Japanese  who  had  been  shipwrecked  on  the 
Philippine  Islands  and  who  were  found  to  possess  some 
Christian  medals,  asked  for  and  received  baptism. 


Modern  Missions  in  Japan. 

The  resurrection  of  the  Christian  Church  in  Japan  dates 
from  1859.  In  the  previous  year,  as  the  result  of  treaties 
made  between  America,  England,  France  and  Japan, 
foreigners  were  permitted  to  reside  at  certain  selected 
Japanese  ports.  In  the  very  year  that  these  treaties  were 
signed,  80  Japanese  Christians  were  discovered  at  Nagasaki, 
10  of  whom  were  tortured  to  death.  The  honour  of  send- 
ing the  first  missionaries  to  take  advantage  of  the  sign- 
ing of  the  treaties  belongs  to  America.      On  May  2,  1859, 

^  For  the  form  of  this  proclamation  see  A  History  of  Christianity  in 
Jajmn,  by  Otis  Gary,  i.  p.  231. 

^  According  to  Jaj)anese  accounts,  however,  these  recanted  and  became 
Buddhists, 


JAPAN  225 

before  the  treaties  came  into  force,  the  Eev.  J.  Liggins,  of 
the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  and,  a  month  later,  the 
Eev.  C.  M.  Williams  (afterwards  Bishop  of  Yedo)  arrived 
at  Nagasaki.  Within  a  year  Dr.  Hepburn  of  the  American 
Presbyterian  Board,  Dr.  Verbeck  of  the  Dutch  Eeformed 
Church  of  America,  and  (in  1860)  a  representative  of  the 
American  Baptists  Society  were  settled  at  Nagasaki,  or  at 
other  treaty  ports.  In  September  1859,  M.  Girard,  a 
Eoman  priest,  arrived  at  Yedo,  and  two  months  later  M. 
Mermet  commenced  active  missionary  work  at  Hakodate. 
During  the  next  five  years  the  Eoman  missionaries  got 
into  touch  with  a  number  of  Christian  communities,  whose 
numbers  were  variously  estimated  at  from  twenty  to  fifty 
thousand,  which  still  retained  the  sacrament  of  baptism 
and  observed  in  secret  Sundays  and  other  Christian  festivals. 
Dr.  Cary  writes : 

"The  organization  of  the  communities  was  nearly  the 
same  in  all  the  villages.  There  were  usually  two  leaders. 
When  possible  the  first  of  these  was  a  man  who  knew  how 
to  read  and  write.  He  presided  at  the  prayers  on  Sunday 
and  came  to  the  beds  of  the  dying.  The  second  was  the 
baptizer.  He  always  had  a  pupil  in  training  to  be  his 
successor.  The  baptizer  did  not  hold  office  for  longer  than 
ten  years,  and  the  pupil  as  a  rule  studied  the  formula  and 
assisted  in  administering  the  rite  for  at  least  five  years 
before  succeeding  to  the  office.  Sometimes  the  offices  of 
baptizer  and  prayer-leader  were  held  by  the  same  person. 
The  Christians  had  some  books  and  religious  emblems  that 
had  been  handed  down  from  generation  to  generation.  One 
treatise  on  Contrition  had  been  composed  in  1603."^ 

The  open  avowal  of  their  Christian  faith  soon  brought 
persecution  upon  the  Japanese  Christians.  Between  1867 
and  1870,  4000  who  had  refused  to  recant  were  arrested 
in  Nagasaki  and  its  neighbourhood.  These  were  deported 
from  their  native  villages  and  were  placed  in  different 
provinces,  where  they  were  subjected  to  very  harsh  treat- 
ment, under  which  many  of  them  died.  By  the  end  of 
1872  these  exiles  began  to  be  more  kindly  treated,  and  in 

^  A  History  of  Christianity  in  Jajyan,  i.  286. 

15 


226  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

the  following  year  the  persecution  of  Christians  fell  into 
abeyance. 

Dr.  H.  Nagaoka,  who  was  for  a  time  an  attach^  at 
the  Japanese  Legation  in  Paris,  and  who  published  in 
1905  a  book  entitled  Histoire  des  relations  du  Japan  avec 
V Europe  aux  xvi^  et  xvii^  sUcles,  represents  the  Japanese 
official  standpoint  with  reference  to  the  Christian  missions. 
According  to  him,  the  question  of  encouraging  or  dis- 
couraging the  spread  of  the  Christian  faith  was  from  first 
to  last  a  political  and  not  a  religious  question.  The 
missionaries  were  encouraged  at  first  by  rulers  of  the 
semi-independent  provinces  of  Japan,  partly  because  they 
were  regarded  as  the  pioneers  of  profitable  trade  and  partly 
because  their  presence  in  one  district  seemed  to  afford  the 
ruler  of  that  district  moral  if  not  material  support  in  his 
disputes  with  the  rulers  of  adjacent  provinces.  The  final 
extirpation  of  the  Christians  was  prompted  by  the  convic- 
tion that  by  no  other  means  could  Japan  retain  her 
political  independence.  Whilst  then  those  who  suffered 
for  their  faith  have  every  right  to  be  regarded  as  martyrs,  it 
is  not  possible  to  ascribe  to  their  persecutors  the  religious 
bigotry  or  intolerance  which  in  many  other  countries  has 
brought  about  religious  persecutions.^ 

The  first  Japanese  unconnected  with  the  Eoman 
Mission  to  receive  baptism  was  Yano  Eiuzan,  who  had 
for  three  years  acted  as  language  teacher  to  the  Rev.  J.  H. 
Ballagh  of  the  Reformed  Church  Mission,  and  had  helped 
Mr.  Ballagh  to  translate  the  Gospel  of  St.  John  into 
Japanese.      His  baptism  took  place  in  November  1864, 

In  1868  the  revolution  occurred  in  Japan  which 
restored  the  supreme  power  to  the  Emperor  and  in- 
augurated the  modern  Japanese  system  of  government. 
Although  the  change  in  the  form  of  government  was  not 
immediately  followed  by  a  cessation  of  persecution,  it 
facilitated  the  residence  of  foreigners  in  Japan  and  in- 
directly paved  the  way  for  the  spread  of  Christian  missions. 
The  first  English  missionary  to  commence  work  in  Japan 

1  P.  51. 


JAPAN  227 

was  the  Rev.  George  Ensor  of  the  C.M.S.,  who  reached 
Nagasaki  in  1869.  Up  to  this  time  the  number  of 
baptisms  connected  with  missions  other  than  those  of  the 
Roman  Church  had  only  amounted  to  nine.  Soon  after 
Mr.  Ensor's  arrival,  a  man  named  Eutagawato  feigned  to 
be  interested  in  Christianity  in  order  that  he  might 
assassinate  Mr.  Ensor.  The  story  of  Christ's  love,  however, 
as  he  heard  it  from  Mr.  Ensor,  so  affected  him  that  he 
became  a  Christian,  and  later  on,  when  imprisoned  on 
account  of  his  faith,  he  preached  Christ  to  the  inmates  of  his 
prison,  with  the  result  that  seventy  of  them  began  to  study 
the  Bible  for  themselves.  For  several  years  inquirers 
could  only  dare  to  visit  Mr.  Ensor  at  night,  and  interviews 
had  to  take  place  behind  barred  doors. 

Of  the  pioneer  Protestant  missionaries  Dr.  G.  F. 
Verbeck  (see  p.  225)  deserves  special  mention.  He 
exercised  a  wide  influence,  especially  amongst  the  Govern- 
ment officials,  and  the  school  which  he  organized  became 
the  first  Imperial  university.     He  died  in  1898. 

The  missions  that  were  established  in  different  parts 
of  Japan  continued  to  progress,  despite  considerable 
persecution,  until  the  year  1873,  when  the  attitude  of  the 
Japanese  Government  towards  Christianity  underwent  a 
change.  On  February  19  the  Government  ordered  the 
removal  of  the  notice-boards  which  contained  the  prohibi- 
tion of  Christianity.  At  this  time  some  of  the  recognized 
leaders  of  Japanese  thought  began  to  suggest  that  the  time 
had  come  for  Japan  to  fall  into  line  with  the  nations  of 
the  West  by  adopting  Christianity  as  its  national  religion. 
Had  their  suggestion  been  adopted  the  results  from  the 
Christian  standpoint  would  have  been  disastrous.  This 
danger  was  happily  averted,  partly  in  consequence  of  the 
vehement  opposition  of  the  official  representatives  of 
Buddhism,  and  partly  because  the  Christians  in  Japan  were 
not  disposed  to  accept  an  eclectic  form  of  Christianity  and 
other  religions  which  found  favour  with  the  advocates  of  a  new 
Japanese  national  religion.  In  1873  the  number  of  foreign 
missionaries  in  Japan,  in  addition  to  those  connected  with 


228  HISTOHY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

the  K.C.  and  Greek  missions,  had  risen  to  87,  of  whom  79 
hailed  from  America  or  Canada.  The  only  English  societies 
then  represented  were  the  C.M.S.  and  the  S.P.G.  One  of 
the  missionaries  wrote — and  his  words  would  have  been 
endorsed  by  nearly  all  his  fellow-workers — "  the  avalanche 
of  opportunities  that  slides  down  upon  us  almost  stuns  us." 
So  late  as  1886  cases  continued  to  be  discovered  in 
which  the  Christian  faith  had  been  secretly  handed  down 
from  generation  to  generation.     Thus  Dr.  Gary  writes : 

"  There  were  sections  of  the  country  where  even  fairly 
intelligent  men  knew  nothing  of  the  great  changes  that  were 
coming  upon  their  land.  One  of  these  persons,  who  lived 
among  the  mountains  of  Yamato,  came  on  business  to  the 
town  of  Shingu  in  the  province  of  Kii.  In  the  evening  he 
lodged  at  the  house  of  a  friend  whom  he  had  not  seen  for 
years.  As  the  two  sat  talking  together,  the  master  of  the 
house  inquired:  'Have  you  ever  heard  anything  about 
Christianity  ? ' 

"  His  guest,  with  a  frightened  air,  lowered  his  voice  and 
baid :  *  Be  cautious.  If  you  talk  of  such  things,  you  will 
surely  be  beheaded.' 

" '  What  makes  you  think  so  ?  * 

" '  Why,  are  you  so  ignorant  as  not  to  know  that  Chris- 
tianity is  strictly  prohibited  ? ' 

"  *  Can  it  be,'  said  the  host,  *  that  you  are  unaware  of  the 
great  changes  that  have  taken  place  ?  We  are  now  free  to 
believe  in  Christianity.  In  this  city  there  is  a  church  of 
which  I  am  a  member,  and  it  is  constantly  growing  larger 
and  larger.' 

" '  I  never  dreamed  of  such  a  thing.  I  myself  am  a 
Christian.  For  ten  generations  the  religion  has  been  handed 
down  in  our  family  from  father  to  son.  I  supposed  that 
the  laws  against  it  were  still  in  force,  and  so  I  have  never 
told  others  of  my  faith.  God  be  praised  if  I  am  now  at 
liberty  to  speak  of  it ! ' 

"  He  was  instructed  by  his  friend,  and  a  few  months  later 
became  a  member  of  the  Shingu  Church." 

A  special  characteristic  of  the  work  done  by  Christian 
missionaries  in  Japan  up  to  about  1888  was  the  successful 
appeal   which  it   made  to  men  of  culture  and  education. 


JAPAN  229 

In  support  of  this  statement  we  may  quote  the  words  of 
Dr.  D.  C.  Greene,  written  in  1889  : 

"Not  less  than  thirty  students  of  the  Imperial 
University  are  avowed  Christians.  Among  the  members  of 
a  single  Congregational  church  are  a  judge  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  Japan,  a  professor  in  the  Imperial  University,  three 
Government  secretaries  (holding  a  rank  hardly,  if  any, 
inferior  to  Mr.  Kaneko  himself),  members  of  at  least  two 
noble  families ;  while  in  a  Presbyterian  church  are  the  three 
most  prominent  members  of  the  Liberal  party,  one  of  them 
a  count  in  the  new  peerage.  Two  influential  members  of  the 
legislature  of  the  prefecture  of  Tokyo,  one  of  them  the 
editor  of  the  Keizai  Zasshi,  the  ablest  financial  journal  in 
Japan,  are  also  members  of  a  Congregational  church.  In 
the  prefectures  of  Kyoto  and  Ehime,  the  Christians  have 
two  representatives  in  each  local  legislature.  In  the  pre- 
fecture of  Guma  the  president  and  vice-president  and  three 
other  members  of  the  legislature  are  Christians,  and  in  the 
Executive  Committee,  out  of  a  total  of  five,  three  are 
Protestant  Christians." 

The  following  figures  illustrate  the  progress  of  Christian 
missions  in  Japan  other  than  those  connected  with  the 
Roman  and  Greek  Churches.  The  numbers  given  refer  to 
communicants  or  baptized  members  of  Christian  Churches : — 


1879  .  .  .  2,700 
1882  .  .  .  4,300 
1889       .        .        .     31,800 


1900  .  ,  .  42,400 
1908  .  .  .  73,400 
1913        .        .        .    98,000 


From  these  figures  it  will  be  seen  that  a  period  of  rapid 
advance  extending  from  1879  to  1889  was  followed  by  a 
period  of  retarded  growth  from  1889  to  1900,  and  that  this 
has  again  been  followed  by  a  period  of  steady  advance.  It 
is  interesting  to  note  that  whereas  on  the  accession  of  the 
late  Emperor  in  1868  there  were  but  4  Christians  in 
Japan  connected  with  Anglican  or  Protestant  missions,  at 
the  time  of  his  death  in  1912  their  number  was  over 
83,000.  The  least  satisfactory  point  in  connection  with 
the  numerical  progress  of  the  Christians  is  the  large 
number  of  persons  in  Japan  who  have  for  a  time  professed 
to  be  Christians  and  have  since  abandoned  their  profession. 


230  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  number  of  self-supporting  mission  stations  in  Japan, 
which  formed  14  per  cent,  of  the  whole  number  in  1882, 
had  increased  to  40  per  cent,  in  1913. 

Greater  progress  has  been  made  in  Japan  than  in  any 
other  non-Christian  land  in  the  formation  of  churches 
that  are  self-governed  and  are  to  a  large  extent  indepen- 
dent of  help  received  from  foreign  missionary  societies. 
The  total  number  of  Christians  in  Japan  is  about  200,000, 
of  whom  half  belong  to  the  Roman  and  Eussian  missions. 
Of  the  other  half,  at  least  three-quarters  are  members  of 
one  of  the  four  Japanese  Churches  which  have  absorbed 
the  converts  connected  with  the  various  English  and 
American  missionary  societies.  These  are  the  Nippon  Sei 
Kokwai,  the  Kumiai  Kyokwai,  the  Nihon  Kirisuto  Kyokwai 
and  the  Nippon  Methodist  Sei  Kyokwai.  The  word  Kokwai 
is  usually  rendered  as  "  Catholic  Church  "  by  the  members 
of  the  first  Church  and  the  word  Kyokwai  as  "  United 
Church,"  or  "  General  Assembly,"  by  the  members  of  the 
other  three  Churches. 

The  Nippon  Sei  Kokwai  or  "  Holy  Catholic  Church  of 
Japan,"  which  was  formed  in  1887,  includes  all  Christians 
connected  with  the  missions  of  the  Anglican  Church.  Its 
adherents  number  about  20,000,  including  17,500  baptized 
Christians.  In  1903,  its  baptized  Christians  numbered 
10,500,  the  increase  during  the  past  decade  being  at  the 
rate  of  66  per  cent. 

The  control  of  the  Church  is  vested  in  the  General 
Synod,  which  meets  once  in  three  years  and  in  which  the 
Japanese  clergy  and  laity  have  a  predominant  share.  The 
appointment  of  its  bishops  also  rests  with  the  diocesan 
synods.  There  are  at  the  present  time  seven  dioceses,  all 
of  which  are  presided  over  by  European  or  American 
bishops.  The  S.P.G.  helps  to  support  the  Bishops  of  South 
Tokyo  [originally  "  Japan  "]  (1883)  and  Osaka  (1896),  the 
C.M.S.  the  Bishops  of  Kyu-shu  (1894)  and  Hokkaido  (1894), 
the  American  Episcopal  Church  the  dioceses  of  North  Tokyo 
[originally  "  Yedo "]  (1871)  and  Kyoto  (1900),  and  the 
Anglican  Church  in  Canada  the  diocese  of  Mid- Japan  (1912). 


JAPAN  231 

At  the  end  of  1913  the  Sei  Kokwai  contained  7 
bishops,  64  European  or  American  and  94  Japanese  clergy, 
and  136  Japanese  catechists. 

Kumiai  Kyohwai  (Congregational  United  Church), 
which  was  formed  in  1883,  includes  the  Christians  con- 
nected with  the  missions  established  by  the  A.B.C.FM. 
Its  total  membership  is  about  20,000.  In  1903  its 
members  numbered  18,000,  its  rate  of  increase  for  the 
decade  1903-13  having  been  about  11  per  cent. 

The  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign 
Missions,  which  is  chiefly  supported  by  Congregationalists, 
began  work  in  1869.  The  most  famous  convert  connected 
with  this  mission  was  Dr.  Neesima,  the  founder  of  the 
Doshisha  College.  In  1905  all  the  churches  which  were 
partly  supported  from  America  and  partly  supported  by 
Japanese  contributions  were  handed  over  to  the  Kumiai 
Kyokwai  with  a  gift  of  money,  which  was  paid  in  three 
annual  instalments.  The  groups  of  Christians  who  are 
now  ministered  to  by  American  missionaries  connected 
with  the  A.B.C.F.M.  are  not  integral  parts  of  the  Kumiai 
Kyokwai,  but  the  desire  of  the  American  missionaries  is 
that  they  should  soon  become  constituent  members  of  this 
Church. 

The  Nihon  Kirisuto  Kyohwai  {i.e.  United  Church  of 
Christ  in  Japan)  was  formed  in  1877,  and  includes 
Christians  connected  with  the  American  Presbyterian 
missions  and  with  the  Dutch  and  German  Eeformed 
Churches  in  U.S.A.  It  has  a  total  membership  of  about 
23,000.  In  1903  it  had  16,500  members;  its  rate  of 
increase  therefore  during  the  decade  1903-13  was  about 
40  per  cent.  It  supports  146  ordained  Japanese 
ministers.  At  Tokyo  the  Presbyterians  have  a  well- 
equipped  series  of  educational  institutions  known  as  the 
Meiji  Gakuin  (school  of  the  enlightened  rule). 

The  Nippon  Methodist  Kyohwaiy  which  was  formed 
in  1907,  includes  the  Christians  connected  with  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  (U.S.A.)  (North),  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  (South),  and  the  Methodist  Church  of 


232  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Canada.  It  has  a  total  membership  of  about  14,000, 
and  has  a  Japanese  Methodist  bishop.  At  Aoyama  in 
Tokyo  the  M.E.C.  (North)  has  a  college  and  school  with 
650  students. 

The  Baptists  number  about  4000,  and  there  are 
about  10,000  Christians  connected  with  a  large  number 
of  small  societies,  amongst  which  are  two  Lutheran 
societies  from  America  and  Finland  and  the  Scandinavian 
Missionary  Alliance,  also  a  Unitarian  Mission  with  200 
members.  The  Kumiai  Kyokwai  has  made  less  rapid 
progress  than  any  other  of  the  Christian  Churches  in 
Japan,  a  fact  which  is  probably  to  be  in  part  explained 
by  the  spread  of  unitarian  teachings  amongst  its  members 
during  recent  years  and  a  consequent  slackening  of  their 
evangelistic  zeal. 

The  Protestant  missions,  with  very  few  exceptions, 
have  united  in  a  general  body  called  the  Federated  Missions 
of  Japan,  through  which  a  large  amount  of  good  work  has 
been  done.  The  object  of  the  Federation  is  to  avoid 
unnecessary  duplication  of  organization  and  to  arrange 
joint  efforts  for  the  evangelization  of  Japan.  One  im- 
portant piece  of  work  which  the  Federation  has  accom- 
plished is  the  formation  of  a  Christian  Literature  Society 
for  the  production  and  distribution  of  Christian  literature. 
A  Union  hymn-book  has  already  obtained  a  circulation  of 
250,000  copies.  The  Anglican  missions  have  not  become 
a  corporate  part  of  this  Federation,  but  many  of  their 
representatives  have  given  it  their  cordial  support.  A 
writer  on  missions  in  Japan  says : 

"  There  is  little  wonder  that  the  brotherly  relationship 
of  the  different  bodies  of  Christians  becomes  a  source  of 
surprise  to  the  Japanese,  who  are  accustomed  to  the  con- 
tentions and  quarrels  so  common  between  the  different 
sects  of  Buddhists  and  Shintoists.  The  cordial  relations 
which  are  maintained  between  the  Christian  peoples  appear 
in  very  great  contrast  and  greatly  commend  the  Christian 
faith  to  the  approval  of  the  people."  ^ 

^  Art.  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  J.  D.  Dealing,  in  Missions  Overseas,  1914,  p.  22. 


JAPAN  233 

Special  mention  should  be  made  of  the  work  that  is 
being  done  in  many  parts  of  Japan  by  the  Y.M.C.A.,  which 
has  56  student  associations.  It  arranges  lectures  for  the 
benefit  of  the  50,000  "college  men";  it  supports  hostels 
for  business  men  in  Dairen,  Kobe  and  Nagasaki,  and  exerts 
a  strong  influence  for  good  in  Tokyo  and  other  towns. 
The  Y.W.C.A.  is  also  doing  excellent  work  amongst 
Japanese  women. 

Amongst  the  philanthropic  works  which  have  been  in- 
augurated by  Christian  Missions  mention  should  be  made 
of  the  four  leper  asylums  that  are  supported  by  Christian 
Missions  in  Japan,  namely,  the  Fukusei  Kogama  at 
Shizuoka  and  the  Biwasaki  Hospital  near  Kumamoto  be- 
longing to  the  E.G.  missions,  the  Resurrection  of  Hope 
Hospital  near  Kumamoto  connected  with  an  Anglican 
Mission,  and  one  at  Tokyo  belonging  to  the  Mission  to 
Lepers  in  India  and  the  East. 

Educational  Work. — From  the  time  that  Japan  was 
re-opened  to  Christian  missionaries,  special  stress  has  been 
laid  upon  the  educational  side  of  mission  work.  Of  the 
missionary  colleges  which  have  been  established  in  Japan, 
the  Doshisha  College  has  perhaps  exerted  the  widest  in- 
fluence. Its  founder  was  Joseph  Neesima  (or  Niishima). 
In  1864,  at  a  time  when  Japanese  were  forbidden  under 
pain  of  death  to  leave  their  country,  he  made  his  way  to 
America,  where  he  became  a  Christian,  and  ten  years  later 
returned  to  Japan  with  funds  wherewith  to  establish  a 
Christian  college.  The  site  selected  was  Kyoto,  which 
was  the  stronghold  of  Japanese  Buddhism.  For  twenty 
years  this  college,  which  was  in  part  supported  by  the 
American  Board  of  Missions,  accomplished  a  great  work  in 
training  Japanese  Christian  students.  In  1895,  however, 
the  character  of  the  college  underwent  a  considerable 
change.  The  Japanese  trustees  refused  to  co-operate  with 
the  American  Board,  which  had  been  instrumental  in 
building  the  college  and  encouraged  the  teaching  of  a 
Unitarian  form  of  Christianity.  After  a  long-protracted 
dispute  the  trustees  resigned,  and  the  college  came  again 


234  HISTORY    OP   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

under  direct  Christian  influence.  Mr.  Kataoka,  who  was 
four  times  chosen  as  Speaker  of  the  Lower  House  of 
Parliament  and  was  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
became  President  of  the  Doshisha  in  1902. 

In  1913  its  professors  and  teachers  numbered  44,  of 
whom  3  2  were  Japanese  and  1 2  American.  There  were  in 
addition  29  lecturers,  most  of  whom  were  attached  to  the 
Kyoto  Imperial  University.  In  this  year  the  college  was 
raised  to  university  rank.     The  students  number  about  700. 

In  1912  the  Sei  Kokwai  and  the  Anglican  mis- 
sionary societies  acting  together  founded  a  central  theo- 
logical college  at  Ikebukuro,  near  Tokyo,  for  the  study  of 
Christian  theology.  This  college  is  a  union  of  divinity 
schools  which  have  hitherto  been  carried  on  in  the  different 
dioceses  of  Japan.  It  admits  graduates  from  St.  Paul's 
College  (S.P.G.)  in  the  department  of  philosophy. 

At  the  conference  of  Christian  missionaries  in  Tokyo, 
over  which  Dr.  Mott  presided  on  April  7,  1913,  it  was 
decided  to  attempt  the  formation  of  a  Christian  university 
for  Japan. 

One  of  the  most  serious  problems  which  confront  the 
missionary  organizations  in  Japan  is  how  to  develop  self- 
support  in  the  Japanese  Church,  and  to  ensure  a  supply  of 
properly  educated  clergy  and  ministers.  Bishop  Cecil  of 
South  Tokyo  states  the  problem  thus : 

"  The  conditions  of  Japan  require  men  of  education,  and 
these  men  must  have  support  for  a  family  as  well  as  for 
themselves.  Who  is  to  supply  it  ?  Eelatively  to  their 
degree  of  education  the  Japanese,  especially  the  official, 
professional  and  student  classes,  ...  in  contrast  to  the 
business  and  farmer  classes,  are  impecunious.  Our  missions 
began  generally  on  the  theory  that  a  priest  or  catechist,  put 
down  in  a  station  and  supported  by  the  mission,  would  in 
the  course  of  time  raise  round  him  a  self-supporting  con- 
gregation. After  a  generation  this  theory  is  now  stultified 
by  general  experience,  and  no  one  seems  to  have  any  other. 
The  number  of  places  in  which  a  foreign  mission  can  support 
the  native  pastorate  on  foreign  funds  is  clearly  very  limited 
— if  indeed  the  whole  theory  be  not  vicious.    Are  we  to 


JAPAN 


235 


return  to  the  (apparent)  New  Testament  way  of  a  'tent- 
making  ministry/  of  ordaining  'in  every  city'  presbyters 
who  are  not  set  apart  from  earning  their  own  living  ?  .  .  . 
If  so,  how  is  the  situation  to  be  combined  with  their  proper 
educational  training  ?  " 

The  experience  of  the  Kumiai  Kyokwai  and  the  Nihon 
Kirisuto  Kyokwai,  to  which  we  have  already  alluded,  does 
not  encourage  the  hope  that  in  the  near  future  the 
difficulty  can  be  surmounted  by  the  withdrawal  of  foreign 
help  and  by  leaving  the  Japanese  to  solve  the  problem  for 
themselves. 


Roman  Catholic  Missions. 

The    following    table    illustrates    the   progress  of  the 
E.C.  missions  to  Japan  during  the  last  forty  years : — 


1870. 

1880. 

1891. 

1900. 

1910. 

1913. 

Christians    . 
European  priests . 
Japanese  priests  . 

10,000 
13 

23,000 
28 

44,505 
82 
15 

57,195 

63,000 

150 

33 

66,000 

152 

33 

It  will  be  noticed  that  during  the  decade  1900-10 
the  rate  of  increase  was  only  10  per  cent,  (as  compared 
with  92  per  cent,  increase  of  the  Anglican  and  Protestant 
missions).  During  the  three  following  years  the  rate  of 
progress  has  been  greater.  The  converts  connected  with 
the  E.C.  missions  form  about  one-third  of  the  Christians 
now  in  Japan. 

In  1891  Pope  Leo  xiii.  re-established  the  Catholic 
hierarchy  in  Japan,  and  constituted  the  archdiocese  of. 
Tokyo  with  three  suffragan  sees  of  Nagasaki,  Osaka  and 
Hakodate  under  the  care  of  the  Missionary  Seminary  at 
Paris.  To  these  have  since  been  added  the  prefectures  of 
Shikoku  and  Niigata,  under  the  care  of  the  Dominicans 
and  the  Missionary  Society  of  Steyl. 


236  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  Jesuit  College  in  Tokyo  was  recognized  by  the 
Japanese  Government  in  1913  as  a  university. 

The  Russian  Mission  to  Japan. 

The  Mission  of  the  "  Orthodox "  Church  to  Japan  is 
one  of  the  most  romantic  and  most  successful  missions  of 
modern  times.  Its  founder,  P^re  Nicolai,  began  his  work 
at  Hakodate  in  1861.  For  several  years  he  served  as  a 
Consular  chaplain  whilst  studying  the  Japanese  language 
and  waiting  an  opportunity  to  preach  the  Christian  faith. 

"  At  last  the  opening  came,  and  in  a  most  dramatic  and 
startling  fashion.  A  certain  Japanese  knight  (Samurai) 
named  Sawabe,  who  had  become  the  keeper  of  a  Shinto 
shrine,  and  had  long  observed  Nicolai  with  suspicion  and 
horror,  burst  in  upon  him  as  he  sat  in  his  quarters  and  told 
him  to  prepare  for  instant  death,  rightly  deserved  by  the 
professor  of  a  corrupt  religion,  who,  moreover,  was  bent 
upon  handing  over  Japan  to  Eussia.  Nicolai  calmly  asked 
him  what  he  knew  about  Christianity,  to  which  the  knight 
replied  that  he  knew  it  was  an  evil  teaching,  and  that  was 
enough.  Whereupon  Nicolai  asked  him  to  hear  him  for  a 
little  while,  and  then  opened  his  Bible  at  Genesis  and  made 
known  the  doctrine  of  creation.  Sawabe  listened  im- 
patiently, but  soon  became  interested,  put  by  his  drawn 
sword,  and  asked  for  instruction.  Little  by  little  he  learned 
the  truth,  then  brought  two  friends,  and  after  some  months 
they  were  baptized.  Eight  long  years  had  passed  since 
Nicolai  had  come  to  Japan  before  he  gained  these  first- 
fruits  of  his  vocation.  Before  he  died,  early  in  1912, 
over  30,000  Japanese  looked  up  to  him  as  their  father-in- 
God.  He  took  away  the  reproach  of  sterility  from  the 
Church  of  Eussia,  for  his  example  in  Japan  kindled  a  fresh 
zeal  for  missions  in  that  Church,  so  that  all  over  Siberia 
little  groups  of  devoted  Christians  are  working  for  the 
Master  and  preaching  Christ  in  all  that  wide  empire."  ^ 

A  special  feature  of  the  work  of  P^re  Nicolai,  or 
Archbishop  Nicolai  as  he  afterwards  became,  was  his 
reliance    upon    Japanese    workers    for    the    conduct    and 

^Missions  Overseas,  1914,  pp.  16 f. 


JAPAN  237 

development  of  his  mission.  He  never  had  six  Europeans 
as  members  of  his  staff.  During  the  Eusso-Japanese  War 
the  Archbishop,  who  had  refused  to  leave  Japan,  bade  the 
Christians  connected  with  the  Eussian  mission  pray  for 
the  success  of  their  own  countrymen.  The  mission  is 
represented  in  many  different  parts  of  Japan,  especially  in 
the  larger  towns.  Its  cathedral  at  Tokyo  occupies  the 
finest  site  in  the  city,  and  its  dome  and  spire  can  be  seen 
for  miles  round.  Before  his  death  the  Archbishop  had  the 
help  of  Bishop  Sergius,  who  has  proved  a  worthy  successor 
to  the  great  founder  of  the  mission.  Sawabe,  who  had 
desired  to  murder  Archbishop  Nicolai,  was  himself  ordained 
as  a  priest  and  survived  his  master  by  a  year. 

A  new  departure  has  recently  been  made  by  this 
mission  in  view  of  training  boys  who  may  hereafter  serve 
as  priests  in  Japan.  Several  Eussian  boys  are  being 
educated  in  the  theological  seminary  of  the  mission  along 
with  Japanese  boys.  The  Eussian  boys  share  the  life  of 
the  Japanese  boys  in  every  detail.  Those  who  are  respons- 
ible for  the  control  of  the  policy  of  the  mission  believe 
that  the  effect  will  be  to  produce  Eussian  priests  possessed 
of  a  better  insight  into  Japanese  character  than  any 
which  Occidentals  have  hitherto  obtained.  The  experi- 
ment that  is  being  made  is  one  of  extraordinary  interest. 

The  total  number  of  adherents  of  the  Eussian  mission 
is  about  33,000  (1914). 

Eecent  Developments. 

The  year  1889  marked  the  beginning  of  a  period  of 
reaction,  not  only  against  Christianity  but  against  the 
tendency  which  had  been  developed  to  imitate  the  customs 
and  actions  of  Western  nations.  The  reaction  was  due  to 
political  as  well  as  to  religious  causes.  At  the  time  when 
the  edict  against  Christianity  was  withdrawn,  the  Japanese 
were  disposed  to  look  with  favour  upon  almost  everything 
that  reached  them  from  the  West,  or  from  America,  and  the 
suggestion  to  which  we  have  already  referred,  was  seriously 


238  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

mooted  that  Japan  ought  to  follow  the  example  of  Europe 
and  America  and  accept  Christianity  as  its  national  religion. 
Had  it  done  so  it  is  difficult  to  say  for  how  long  the 
Christianization  of  Japan  would  have  been  delayed,  but 
happily  this  was  not  to  be.  As  the  influence  of  Christianity 
continued  to  spread  throughout  Japan,  those  responsible 
for  the  government  of  the  country  realized  that  it  would 
be  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  maintain  the  traditional 
reverence  for  the  Emperor's  divinity  if  the  teaching  of 
Christianity  were  allowed  free  course.  Moreover,  in  Japan, 
as  in  many  other  countries,  liberal  and  socialistic  move- 
ments began  to  develop  which  threatened  the  stability  of 
the  Government  and  of  the  imperial  regime. 

Shintoism,  which  is  sometimes  called  the  national 
religion  of  the  Japanese,  had  its  origin  in  the  primitive 
nature-worship  of  the  earliest  inhabitants  of  Japan,  and  an 
early  type  of  it  is  found  still  amongst  the  Ainu  in  the 
north.  It  inculcated  reverence  for  deceased  ancestors, 
which  developed  into  a  reverence,  almost  amounting  to 
worship,  for  the  Mikado  and  the  ancestors  of  his  house. 
The  fall  of  the  Shogunate  in  1868,  and  the  revolution 
which  accompanied  it,  were  followed  by  a  great  revival  of 
Shintoism  as  distinguished  from  Buddhism.  The  emphasis 
which  was  laid  upon  the  cardinal  doctrine  of  Shintoism, 
that  is  upon  a  belief  in  the  Emperor's  divine  descent,  wac  a 
chief  factor  in  binding  the  Japanese  nation  together  and 
preparing  the  way  for  their  victory  in  their  war  with  Russia. 
The  Japanese  realized  that  reverence  for  the  Emperor's 
divinity  was  the  pivot  of  the  position,  and  that  from  a 
political  point  of  view  their  best  hope  of  maintaining  the 
popular  reverence  for  the  Emperor  was  to  encourage 
Shintoism  as  the  State  religion.  Accordingly  official 
encouragement  was  given  to  its  supporters  and  Christianity 
became  correspondingly  unpopular. 

For  twenty  years  Shintoism  and  Buddhism,  but 
especially  the  former,  received  State  patronage,  and  though 
Christians  were  never  actively  persecuted,  it  was  generally 
understood  that  the  acceptance  of  the  Christian  faith  would 


JAPAN  239 

retard  the  advancement  of  any  one  employed  by  the  State. 
Two  causes  have  been  acting  within  recent  years  which 
have  brought  about  a  change  of  attitude  on  the  part  of 
the  Japanese  Government.  It  has  come  to  be  recognized 
by  the  Japanese  that  whilst  Shintoism  can  suggest  noble 
ideals,  it  cannot  supply  the  motive  power  necessary  to  the 
attainment  of  these  ideals,  nor  can  it  become  a  moral  force 
which  can  purify  and  uplift  the  life  of  the  nation.  For 
many  years  after  the  re-introduction  of  Christianity  those 
who  were  responsible  for  the  government  of  Japan  believed 
that  Shintoism,  the  profession  of  which  involved  an  acknow- 
ledgment of  the  Emperor's  divinity,  provided  the  best 
means  of  inculcating  patriotism  and  loyalty.  They  have, 
however,  now  come  to  realize  that  the  belief  in  the  divine 
prerogatives  of  the  Emperor  can  no  longer  be  maintained 
in  its  old  form,  and  that  Shintoism  can  no  longer  serve 
as  the  national  religion  of  Japan. 

At  the  same  time  they  have  realized  that  Buddhism 
cannot  take  its  place,  and  that  the  only  alternative  to 
Christianity  must  be  a  form  of  agnosticism,  which  would 
not  help  the  nation  either  morally  or  politically.  A  step, 
which  marked  the  beginning  of  an  epoch  in  the  history 
of  religion  in  Japan,  was  taken  on  January  17,  1912, 
when  Mr.  Tokonami,  Vice-Minister  of  Education,  announced 
to  a  meeting  of  press  representatives  that  the  Government 
had  decided  to  recognize  Christianity  as  a  religion  which 
they  were  prepared  to  encourage.  In  his  speech,  which  was 
in  fact  a  formal  declaration  of  the  new  Government  policy, 
he  began  by  saying: — 

"In  order  to  bring  about  an  affiliation  of  the  three 
religions  it  is  necessary  to  connect  religion  with  the  State 
more  closely,  so  as  to  give  it  additional  dignity,  and  thus 
impress  upon  the  public  the  necessity  of  attaching  greater 
importance  to  religious  matters.  In  the  early  years  of  the 
Restoration  the  nation,  too  eager  to  reform  all  the  traditional 
institutions,  did  not  judiciously  discriminate  between  what 
should  be  destroyed  and  what  should  be  preserved  intact. 
Many  Buddhist  temples  and  Shinto  shrines  were  demolished, 


240  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

and  the  national  sentiment  towards  religion  was  thereby 
greatly  impaired.  Christianity  was  then  also  held  in 
abhorrence  and  distrust.  Since  the  freedom  of  religious 
faith  has  been  arrested,  however,  Christian  teachers  have 
been  energetically  engaged  in  the  propaganda  of  their 
religion.  Taking  these  circumstances  into  consideration, 
it  is  felt  necessary  to  give  religion  an  additional  power  and 
dignity.  The  culture  of  national  ethics  can  be  perfected 
by  education  combined  with  religion.  At  present  moral 
doctrines  are  inculcated  by  education  alone,  but  it  is 
impossible  to  inculcate  firmly,  fair  and  upright  ideas  in  the 
mind  of  the  nation  unless  the  people  are  brought  into 
touch  with  the  fundamental  conception  known  as  God, 
Buddha,  or  Heaven,  as  taught  in  religions.  It  is  necessary 
that  education  and  religion  should  go  hand  in  hand  to  build 
up  the  basis  of  the  national  ethics,  and  it  is  therefore 
desirable  that  a  scheme  should  be  devised  to  bring  education 
and  religion  into  closer  relations  to  enable  them  to  promote 
the  national  welfare.  This  necessitates  binding  the  State 
and  religion  by  closer  ties."  . 

He  then  went  on  to  express  the  hope  that  Christianity 
would  "  step  out  of  the  narrow  circle  within  which  it  is 
confined,  and  endeavour  to  conform  to  the  national  polity 
and  adapt  itself  to  the  national  sentiments  and  customs, 
in  order  to  ensure  greater  achievements." 

One  result  of  this  action  on  the  part  of  the  Government 
was  that  a  conference  of  certain  representatives  of  "  the 
three  religions"  was  held  (Feb.  25,  1912)  which  was 
attended  by  several  members  of  the  Japanese  Cabinet. 
The  resolutions  which  were  subsequently  passed  began 
with  the  following  statement  (the  translation  into  English 
is  made  by  a  Japanese) : — 

"We  acknowledge  that  the  will  of  the  Government 
authorities,  which  led  us  to  hold  the  conference  of  the 
representatives  of  the  three  religions^  is  to  respect  the 
authority  of  religion,  which  each  possesses,  to  promote 
national  morality,  and  to  improve  public  discipline,  without 
spoiling  our  original  creeds ;  and  the  statesmen,  religionists, 
and  educationists,  non-interfering  with  one  another,  and 
to  maintain  the  honour  of  the  Imperial  Household  and  to 
contribute  to  the  progress  of  the  times." 


JAPAN  241 

The  missionary  prospect  in  Japan  has  been  considerably 
modified  by  this  change  of  attitude  towards  Christianity 
on  the  part  of  the  Government  of  Japan,  but  whether  or 
no  Christian  missionaries  have  reason  to  be  thankful  for 
the  change  remains  yet  to  be  seen. 

Count  Shigenobu  Okuma,  who  was  one  of  the  founders 
of  New  Japan  and  was  Prime  Minister  in  1898,  and 
again  in  1914,  describes  the  condition  of  things  in  1909 
thus: — 

"  Japan  at  present  may  be  likened  to  a  sea  into  which 
a  hundred  currents  of  Oriental  and  Occidental  thoughts  have 
poured  in,  and  not  having  yet  effected  a  fusion,  are  raging 
wildly,  tossing,  warring,  and  roaring."  "  The  old  religions 
and  old  morals,"  he  writes,  "  are  steadily  losing  their  hold, 
and  nothing  has  yet  arisen  to  take  their  place."  "  A  portion 
of  our  people  go  neither  by  the  old  code  of  ethics  and 
etiquette  nor  by  those  of  modern  days,  while  they  are  also 
disinclined  to  conform  to  those  of  foreign  countries,  and  such 
persons  convey  the  impression  of  neither  possessing  or  being 
governed  by  any  ideas  about  morality,  public  or  private."  ^ 

We  may  compare  this  statement  with  a  later  state- 
ment by  Count  Okuma  in   1912: 

"  Although  Christianity  has  enrolled  less  than  200,000 
believers,  yet  the  indirect  influence  of  Christianity  has 
poured  into  every  realm  of  Japanese  life.  It  has  been 
borne  to  us  on  all  the  currents  of  European  civilization ; 
most  of  all  the  English  language  and  literature,  so  sur- 
charged with  Christian  ideas,  has  exerted  a  wide  and  deep 
influence  over  Japanese  thought. 

"  Christianity  has  affected  us  not  only  in  such  superficial 
ways  as  the  legal  observance  of  Sunday,  but  also  in  our 
ideals  concerning  political  institutions,  the  family,  and 
woman's  station.  Even  our  lighter  literature,  such  as 
fiction  and  the  newspapers,  betrays  the  influence  of  Anglo- 
Saxon  and  German  literature  and  personalities.  Not  a 
few  ideals  in  Japan  which  are  supposed  to  have  been 
derived  from  Chinese  literature  are  in  reality  due  to 
European  literature."  ^ 

^  Fifty  Years  of  New  Japan,  London,  vol.  ii.  p.  568. 
2  See  International  Review  of  Missions,  vol.  i.  p.  654. 

i6 


242  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

In     endeavouring     to     estimate     the     prospects    of 
Christianity  in  Japan  in  the  near  future,  it  is  necessary 
to    take    into    account    the    low  standards    in    regard    to 
purity  and  truth  which  the  religions  of  Japan  have  done 
little  to  raise.     Polygamy  in  the  ordinary  sense  of    the 
term  is  not  found,  but    prostitution  and  other  forms   of 
immorality    are    sadly    common.      Moreover,   concubinage 
is    sanctioned    by    custom    and    divorce    is    easy.       In    a 
country  the    language   of    which    is    said    to    contain    no 
equivalent    for    "  home,"    one    of    the    chief    tasks    con- 
fronting   those   who   would    interpret    Christianity  to   its 
people  is   to   place   before    them    the    Christian    ideal   of 
family  life.      Until  the   average  conception   of   home-life 
is  raised  far  above  the  level  at  which  it  now  stands,  the 
opening  words  of  the  Lord's  Prayer  and  the  fundamental 
doctrines  of   the  Faith  which  are  inherent  in  them  will 
wake  but  a  weak  response  in  the  hearts  of  the  Japanese 
nation.     In  regard  to  the  question  of  truth,  it  is  hard  to 
convince    a   Japanese    that,  unless    the    telling    of    a    lie 
involves  cowardice    or   disrespect  to   authority,  there  can 
be   anything    in    it    to    which    objection    can    be    taken. 
Commercial  dishonesty  is   perhaps    less   common    than  it 
was,  the  change  being  partly  due  to  the  fact  that  within 
recent  years   the   higher   and    better  educated    classes   of 
society   have    taken   part  in  commerce.     The  greatest  of 
all  the  obstacles  to  the  spread  of  the  Christian  faith  is 
a  widespread  belief  that  the  Japanese  people  have  a  divine 
descent  and  a  divine  mission  which  differentiate  them  from 
all  other  nations  and  races.     To  accept  a  religion  which 
comes  to  Japan  from  Europe  or  America  appears  to  many 
Japanese    equivalent  to   the  abandonment  of    this  claim. 
Moreover,  to   suggest    that    their    Emperor   should    kneel 
(albeit  in   the  company  of    the   Kings  and    Emperors   of 
Europe)   and   acknowledge   himself   a  "miserable   sinner," 
is    to    suggest    what    to    the    average    Japanese    appears 
nothing   short  of  blasphemy.      Dr.  Cary,  in  referring   to 
the  article  published  by  Professor  Inoue  Tetsujiro  of  the 
Imperial  University  in  1893,  says: 


JAPAN  243 

"  By  quotations  from  Christ's  words  and  by  references  to 
European  history,  he  endeavoured  to  show  that  Christianity 
is  destructive  of  patriotism.  He  closed  by  asserting  that 
as  Christ  Himself  had  said,  *  Every  kingdom  divided  against 
itself  is  brought  to  desolation,'  therefore  the  reception  of 
Christianity  would  involve  national  destruction."  ^ 

A  leading  monthly  periodical  published  in  Japan  in 
1907,  after  referring  to  the  progress  of  Christian  missions 
in  Japan,  went  on  to  remark : 

"  Supposing  that  these  movements  should  be  successful, 
our  Empire  will  be  changed  into  a  Christian  country,  our 
unique  history  extending  over  a  period  of  2500  years  will 
be  trampled  on,  and  the  spirit  of  Japan  will  be  destroyed. 
Not  only  is  the  Christian  spirit  not  sufficient  to  lead  the 
new  generation,  but  it  will  make  the  people  weak  and 
hypocritical,  and  destroy  their  character."  ^ 

There  is  probably  no  country  in  the  world  at  the 
present  time  in  which  so  large  a  proportion  of  the  educated 
section  of  the  population  would  call  themselves  "  agnostics  " 
as  is  the  case  in  Japan. 

According  to  a  recent  analysis  of  the  religious  beliefs 
of  the  students  attending  the  Imperial  University  in  Tokyo, 
3000  were  agnostics,  1500  atheists,  450  Shintoists  or 
Buddhists  and  60  Christians.  We  may  compare  with 
this  statement  the  fact  that  out  of  the  315,000,000 
people  in  India  enumerated  in  the  last  census,  only 
50  declared  themselves  as  agnostics,  and  one  as  an  atheist. 
Of  the  former  apparently  45  were  Chinese. 

The  Japanese  have  not  the  religious  instinct  developed 
to  anything  like  the  same  extent  as  it  is  developed 
amongst  the  majority  of  the  peoples  of  India.  European 
civilization  and  culture  burst  suddenly  upon  Japan, 
with  the  result  that  those  who  began  to  absorb  Western 
literature  and  Western  science  rapidly  lost  faith  in  the 
religious  sanctions  which  had  exerted  an  influence  upon 

*  A  History  of  Christianity  in  Jajyan,  vol.  ii.  p.  243. 

*  Reproduced  in  Japan  Evangelist,  June  1907i 


244  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

them  in  the  past,  and  before  they  had  had  time  to  make 
any  intelligent  study  of  the  Christian  faith. 

We  believe  that  Christianity  will  one  day  be  the 
religion  of  Japan,  but  the  Japanese  Christianity  of  the 
future  may  be  of  a  less  emotional,  and  perhaps  less 
devotional,  and  less  dogmatic  character  than  the  Chris- 
tianity of  many  other  countries. 

The  Bible  in  Japan. — In  the  sixteenth  century  the 
Jesuits  translated  the  Decalogue,  the  Lord's  Prayer  and 
other  extracts  from  the  Bible  which  occurred  in  their 
liturgical  services.  They  are  also  said  to  have  printed  a 
translation  of  the  New  Testament  at  Miyako  (Kyoto) 
before  1613,  but  no  copy  of  this  translation  appears  to 
have  survived.  In  1831  three  survivors  of  a  Japanese 
junk  which  had  been  driven  by  a  storm  across  the  Pacific 
made  their  way  across  Canada  to  London,  and  eventually 
assisted  the  well-known  missionary  Gutzlaff,  of  the  Nether- 
lands Missionary  Society,  who  was  stationed  at  Macao,  to 
translate  into  Japanese  the  Gospel  and  Epistles  of  St.  John. 
These  were  printed  at  Singapore  in  1837.  The  earliest 
complete  version  of  the  New  Testament  was  begun  by 
Goble,  an  American  Baptist  missionary,  in  1871,  and  was 
completed  in  1879.  In  1887  a  complete  edition  of  the 
Bible  was  issued,  in  the  translation  of  which  representatives 
of  the  principal  missionary  societies  working  in  Japan  had 
taken  part.  In  1895—97  the  four  Gospels  and  in  1911 
the  whole  of  the  N.T.  were  translated  from  the  Vulgate  by 
Eoman  Catholic  missionaries,  and  in  1900  a  version  of  the 
N.T.  translated  by  Bishop  Nicolai  of  the  Greek  Orthodox 
Church  was  issued.  The  following  story  illustrates  the 
influence  which  a  study  of  the  New  Testament  exerted 
upon  some  of  the  Japanese  who  first  saw  it.  In  1855, 
whilst  a  British  fleet  lay  at  anchor  in  Nagasaki  Bay, 
Wakasa  Murata,  who  was  in  command  of  the  Japanese 
forces  which  had  received  orders  to  prevent  any  one  from 
the  British  fleet  landing  on  the  shores  of  Japan,  picked  up 
a  Dutch  New  Testament  which  was  floating  in  the  water 
and  had  apparently  been  dropped  by  one  of   the  Dutch 


JAPAN  245 

merchantmen  which  were  permitted  to  trade  at  Nagasaki. 
The  officer's  interpreter,  who  was  a  Dutchman,  explained 
that  this  was  the  Holy  Book  of  the  Christians.  The  curi- 
osity of  Wakasa  was  aroused,  and  having  learned  that  a 
copy  of  the  book  could  be  obtained  in  classical  Chinese,  he 
had  a  copy  sent  to  him  from  Shanghai.  A  study  of  the 
book  resulted,  after  eight  years,  in  the  baptism  of  himself, 
his  brother  and  several  other  members  of  his  family. 

Notwithstanding  the  large  number  of  missionary 
societies  which  are  now  represented  in  Japan,  and  the 
existence  of  four  self -governed  Japanese  Churches,  Christian 
missions  have  hardly  yet  touched  more  than  the  fringe  of 
the  country.  At  the  Missionary  Conference  over  which 
Dr.  Mott  presided  in  Japan  in  1913,  it  was  stated  that 
whilst  80  per  cent,  of  the  Japanese  people  live  in  villages, 
96  per  cent,  of  the  village  inhabitants  of  Japan  are  as 
yet  unreached  by  Christian  missions,  or  if  we  take  the 
town  and  country  population  together,  80  per  cent,  of  the 
entire  population  of  Japan  are  out  of  reach  of  Christian 
missionaries. 

Formosa. 

Formosa,  which  is  about  half  the  size  of  Scotland,  has 
a  population  of  over  3,000,000.  The  mountains  are  in- 
habited by  savages,  the  lower  hills  by  civilized  aborigines, 
and  the  level  plains  by  Chinese  interspersed  with  Japanese. 
From  1624  to  1662  the  Dutch  were  in  possession  of 
the  island,  and  idolatry  was  treated  as  a  criminal  offence 
(see  p.  47). 

Despite  the  superficial  character  of  the  missionary 
work  done  by  the  Dutch  in  Formosa,  some  knowledge  of 
the  Christian  faith  lingered  on  for  nearly  a  century. 
Long  after  the  Chinese  had  driven  the  Dutch  from  the 
island  (1683)  the  Jesuit,  de  Mailla,  who  was  working  as 
surveyor  for  the  Imperial  Government  in  1715,  found 
indications  of  the  Dutch  Mission,  and  even  of  the  Dutch 
language.  Many  natives,  abhorring  idols,  professed  belief 
in  one  God,  Father,  Son  and  Holy  Spirit ;  knew  the  story 


246  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

of  Adam  and  Eve's  fall ;  believed  that  baptism  effaced  the 
"  stain "  of  that  fall ;  knew  the  baptismal  formula ;  were 
reported  by  the  heathen  Chinese  to  have  the  custom  of 
pouring  cold  water  on  new-born  infants.  "  Nevertheless," 
de  Mailla  continues,  "  we  were  unable  to  know  certainly  if 
they  were  baptized  or  not.  ...  It  seemed  that  they  have 
no  idea  of  the  rewards  or  punishments  of  the  other  life,  so 
it  is  probable  they  do  not  take  great  care  to  baptize  their 
children.  We  tried,  as  far  as  we  could,  to  teach  them  the 
most  necessary  truths  of  our  holy  religion  .  .  .  and  above 
all  to  baptize  their  children  as  soon  as  they  were  born, 
in  case  there  might  be  some  hope  of  instructing  them  when 
they  were  capable  of  receiving  it.  What  grief  for  us  to 
see  ourselves  in  the  midst  of  so  fair  a  harvest,  which  would 
become  very  abundant  if  it  had  apostolic  labourers  to 
cultivate  it,  and  yet  to  be  obliged  to  abandon  it  without 
hope  of  help  ! " 

When  Formosa  became  part  of  the  Chinese  Empire 
in  1683,  Christianity,  or  rather  the  nominal  profession  of 
Christianity,  began  to  die  out.  In  1865  the  English 
Presbyterian  Church  began  missionary  work,  having  been 
preceded  by  a  few  years  by  a  E.C.  mission.  In  1872  the 
Canadian  Presbyterian  Church  started  a  mission  in  North 
Formosa.  The  cession  of  the  island  to  Japan  in  1905 
has  been  followed  by  its  opening  up  to  Western  civilization 
and  has  facilitated  the  extension  of  missionary  enterprise. 

In  1912  a  union  was  effected  between  the  Canadian 
and  English  Presbyterian  missions.  The  united  synod 
represents  a  Christian  community  of  over  30,000. 

The  Japanese  Church  in  Japan  in  connection  with 
the  Anglican  missions  started  work  among  the  Japanese 
residents  in  Formosa  in  1897  at  the  suggestion  of  the 
Japanese  authorities. 


IX. 

COREA. 

The  story  of  Christian  missions  in  Corea  is  full  of  romance 
and  of  inspiration.  In  no  other  country  has  the  persecution 
of  Christians  been  so  intense,  and  in  no  other  has  Chris- 
tianity within  recent  years  made  such  rapid  advance.  The 
country  is  one  of  which  little  has  been  known  in  Europe 
until  comparatively  lately. 

Many  who  are  familiar  only  with  its  chequered  history 
during  recent  years  are  ignorant  of  its  great  and,  in 
some  respects,  glorious  past.  The  Coreans  can  boast  of 
having  been  the  first  people  to  print  from  metal  type,  of 
having  invented  an  alphabet  to  take  the  place  of  the 
Chinese  ideographs,  and  of  having  constructed  the  first 
ironclad  ship.  This  last  was  used  by  them  in  their  efforts 
to  repel  the  Japanese  invasion  in  the  sixteenth  century. 
At  this  period,  when  Corea  was  starting  on  her  downward 
career,  "  she  had  made  great  advances  in  civilization  and 
prosperity.  Polite  learning,  as  typified  in  the  knowledge 
of  the  Chinese  classics,  was  universal  among  the  higher 
classes,  while  among  the  lower  many  of  her  artisans  had 
attained  a  high  degree  of  technical  and  artistic  skill  .  .  .  her 
people,  homogeneous,  industrious,  intelligent,  and  tranquil, 
lived  in  physical  comfort  and  security."^  The  Japanese 
invasion  of  the  country  resulted  in  a  determination  on  the 
part  of  its  rulers  rigidly  to  exclude  from  Corea  all  foreigners. 
By  murdering  almost  every  stranger  who  was  shipwrecked 
on  their  coasts  or  who  attempted  to  enter  from  the  north, 
they  succeeded  in  shutting  themselves  off  from  the  outside 
world  for  three  centuries  and  a  half. 

1  The  Story  of  Corea,  by  S.  H.  Longford,  1911. 
247 


248  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Before  we  describe  the  introduction  of  Christianity 
into  Corea  a  few  words  must  be  said  in  regard  to  its  earlier 
religions. 

The  Religion  of  Corea. — Corea  is  a  less  religious  country 
than  either  China  or  Japan.  The  people  for  the  most  part 
profess  to  be  Confucianists  and  practise  ancestral  worship 
Buddhism  has  even  less  influence  than  it  has  in  China. 
The  real  religion  of  the  people  is  a  form  of  Shamanism, 
which  peoples  the  world  with  spirits  and  demons  who  are 
believed  to  require  constant  propitiatory  offerings. 

Hideyoshi,  the  Japanese  commander  who  invaded 
Corea  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  took  back  to 
Japan  a  number  of  Coreans,  some  of  whom  embraced  the 
Christian  faith  and  died  as  martyrs  in  Japan.  In  1784  a 
son  of  a  Corean  ambassador  to  Peking  was  baptized  by  the 
Franciscan  Mission  in  Peking.  On  his  return  to  Corea  he 
began  to  preach  and  to  baptize,  but  persecution  almost 
immediately  broke  out  and  the  first  convert  was  induced 
to  renounce  his  new  faith.  Many,  however,  of  those  whom 
he  had  helped  to  convert  were  tortured  to  death  rather 
than  recant,  and,  despite  increasing  persecution,  the 
number  of  Christians  continued  to  grow.  These  elected 
from  amongst  themselves  a  bishop  and  priests,  who  ad- 
ministered the  Christian  sacraments,  and  after  the  lapse 
of  two  or  three  years  they  opened  communication  with  the 
Roman  missionaries  in  Peking  and  asked  to  have  a  priest 
sent  to  them.  The  first  sent  was  a  Chinese  named  Tsiou, 
who  lived  in  disguise  for  seven  years,  till  1801,  when  he 
was  put  to  death  by  the  authorities. 

In  this  year  a  systematic  attempt  was  made  to 
exterminate  the  Christians,  who  then  numbered  nearly 
10,000.  Many  thousands  were  put  to  death,  including 
all  their  leaders,  their  books  were  destroyed  or  buried, 
and  the  survivors  were  scattered  among  the  heathen 
without  having  opportunities  for  common  worship  or  even 
for  communication  with  each  other.  Although  some 
recanted,  the  vast  majority  were  content  to  suffer  every 
form  of  torture  or  death  rather  than  abjure  their  faith.      It 


COREA  249 

is  doubtful  whether  any  Christians  in  the  old  Roman 
Empire  suffered  as  did  the  Corean  Christians  during  the 
first  seventy  years  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Eenewed 
efforts  were  made  to  exterminate  the  Christians  in  1815, 
1819  and  1827. 

In  1832,  Bishop  Bruguiere,  who  had  worked  in  Siam, 
was  sent  to  Corea  by  the  Society  of  Foreign  Missions  at 
Paris.  After  a  journey  which  occupied  three  years  he 
died  just  as  he  was  reaching  the  borders  of  Corea.  His 
place  was  taken  by  Maubant,  who  had  previously  been  a 
missionary  in  Tartary,  who  reached  Seoul  in  safety.  In 
1837,  Bishop  Imbert  also  succeeded  in  reaching  Seoul. 
At  the  close  of  1838  the  number  of  Christians  was 
reckoned  at  6000.  In  the  following  year  another  cruel 
persecution  occurred.  Many  of  the  victims  belonged  to 
the  upper  classes  in  Corea,  who  sacrificed  everything  and 
shared  with  the  common  people  the  death  from  which 
their  rank  should  legally  have  exempted  them.  Amongst 
the  martyrs  were  the  Bishop  and  the  two  European  priests 
at  Seoul,  who  were  cruelly  tortured  before  being  killed. 
In  1845,  Bishop  Ferr^ol  and  a  priest  named  Daveluy, 
both  of  French  nationality,  succeeded  in  crossing  in  a  small 
boat  from  Shanghai  to  Corea,  and  were  joined  five  years 
later  by  another  priest  named  Maistre. 

Ferr^ol  died  in  1850  and  Maistre  in  1857,  but  the 
number  of  their  successors  began  to  increase  rapidly.  By 
1859  the  number  of  Christians  was  reckoned  at  16,700. 
In  1865  the  anti-Christian  party  in  the  State  persuaded 
the  Eegent  to  sanction  the  extermination  of  the  Christians, 
and  the  Bishop  and  seven  European  missionaries  were  put 
to  death  with  cruel  tortures.  In  the  course  of  a  few 
weeks  Christianity  was  well-nigh  exterminated.  A  French 
fleet  made  an  abortive  attempt  to  obtain  redress  for  the 
murder  of  the  French  missionaries.  Between  1866  and 
1870  more  than  8000  Coreans  suffered  death  as  Chris- 
tian martyrs,  apart  from  the  large  number  of  those  who 
perished  of  cold  and  hunger  on  the  barren  mountains  to 
which  they  fled. 


250  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

In  1876  a  few  Corean  ports  were  opened  to  Japanese 
trade,  but  it  was  not  till  1882  that,  by  a  treaty  made  with 
the  U.S.A.,  the  country  was  practically  opened  to  foreigners. 
Missionary  work  was  commenced  by  American  Presbyterians 
and  by  the  American  Episcopal  Methodists  in  1884.  An 
Anglican  Mission,  with  Bishop  Corfe  as  its  leader,  started 
work  in  1890.  At  this  time  the  number  of  converts  un- 
connected with  the  Eoman  missions  did  not  exceed  100. 
During  the  following  ten  years  they  multiplied  by  10. 

Protestant  missionary  pioneers. — In  1832  Gutzlaff  (see 
p.  244)  landed  and  spent  a  month  in  Basil's  Bay  selling 
Chinese  Bibles  and  other  books.  In  1866,  Mr.  Thomas 
of  the  L.M.S.  sailed  for  Corea  in  an  American  schooner, 
but  he  and  all  the  other  members  of  the  crew  were 
apparently  murdered  by  the  Coreans.  In  1877  the 
Rev.  J.  Ross  of  Moukden  (of  the  U.F.C.  of  S.  Mission) 
published  an  English- Corean  primer,  and  he  and  Mr. 
M'Intyre  translated  the  whole  of  the  New  Testament  into 
Corean,  their  translation  being  published  by  the  Presbyterian 
Press  at  Shanghai.  The  conversion  of  several  Coreans  is 
known  to  have  resulted  from  this  work. 

So  rapidly  did  Christianity  spread  that  when  the 
annexation  of  the  country  was  proclaimed  by  Japan  in 
1910  there  were  in  all  453  missionaries,  of  whom  50 
were  French,  90  British  and  306  hailed  from  America. 
Although  the  honour  of  having  started  the  Christian 
Church  in  Corea  and  of  ministering  to  it  during  nearly 
a  century  of  continuous  persecution  belongs  to  the  Roman 
missions,  these  do  not  at  the  present  time  minister  to 
half  the  Christian  population,  and  the  proportion  of 
R.C.  converts  is  rapidly  decreasing.  As  we  take  note  of 
the  rapid  change  which  has  come  over  this  ancient  land,  we 
cannot  but  ask  with  anxiety  whether  the  depth  and 
stability  of  the  work  are  in  any  degree  proportionate  to 
its  speed.  On  the  whole  the  answer  to  our  question  is 
less  unsatisfactory  than  we  might  have  feared.  It  is  true 
that  some  of  the  missionaries,  especially  those  who  come 
from  America,  are  prepared  to  baptize    converts   after  a 


COREA  251 

preparation  which  appears  to  be  dangerously  short,  but 
even  in  these  missions  baptism  has,  as  a  general  rule, 
been  preceded  by  the  confession  of  sins  and  by  efforts  to 
make  restitution  to  those  who  have  been  wronged,  which 
have  afforded  proof  of  the  sincerity  of  the  converts. 

General  Statistics. — In  1913  the  number  of  baptized 
Christians  connected  with  the  Anglican  and  Protestant 
missions  numbered  75,000  and  the  number  of  Christian 
adherents  185,000.  Connected  with  these  missions  there 
were  10,000  churches  and  schools  containing  13,250  boys 
and  5800  girls,  20  hospitals  and  23  dispensaries.  The 
American  and  European  missionaries  (including  wives) 
number  about  330.  Of  these  164  are  connected  with 
Presbyterian  missions,  95  with  Methodist,  32  with  Anglican, 
16  with  the  Salvation  Army  and  24  with  other  societies. 

The  number  of  Christians  connected  with  E.C.  missions 
in  1913  was  80,657.  These  were  ministered  to  by  58 
European  and  17  Corean  priests. 

The  statement  made  by  Dr.  A.  M.  Sharrocks  with 
reference  to  the  progress  of  the  American  Presbyterian 
Missions  (North)  in  Corea  applies  with  little  modification 
to  the  other  missions.     He  writes : 

"  Those  who  have  been  following  the  missionary  enter- 
prise  in   Corea   will   have    noticed   that   the   phenomenal 
growth  took  its  start  about  the  year  1904,  the  year  of  the 
Russo-Japanese  War.  .  .  .  In  the  years  1904  and  1905  anew 
life  seemed  to  take  hold  of  the  Church.     The  growth  m  1906, 
1907  and  1908  became  phenomenal.     The  30,000  m  1905 
suddenly  increased  to  nearly  110,000  in  1911.     It  seemed 
as  though  the  whole  nation  were  on  the  eve  of  boltmg  mto 
the  Kingdom.  ...  In  the  midst  of  this  rapid  growth,  that 
is  in  the  years  1906   and  1907,   there  broke  out  m   the 
Church  one  of  the  most  remarkable  revivals  that  ever  swept 
a  mission  field.     The  distinctive  feature  of  the  revival  was 
that  it  was  among  the  professing  Christians  rather  than  the 
non-converted.     During  the  period   of  rapid   growth  .  .  . 
the  year   1907  stands   out   conspicuously  as  the  only  one 
that  shows  a  falling   off  in  the  increasing  number  of  the 
baptisms.  ...  The   casual   reader   of   mission  reports  will 
pronounce  the  years  1910-12  as  years  of  decline.     In  some 


252  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

respects  they  were.  The  total  adherentage  (sic),  which  had 
been  going  up  by  leaps  and  bounds,  not  only  failed  to 
increase,  but  actually  shrunk  about  10  per  cent,  on  its 
former  number.  .  .  .  But  the  year  1912,  when  so  many  of 
the  pastors  and  Church  officers  were  in  Seoul  on  trial  in  the 
'  Conspiracy  case,'  turns  out  to  be  the  banner  year  in  the 
number  of  baptisms  administered.  ...  In  1909  the  total 
adherents  numbered  about  95,000  and  the  communicants 
25,000.^  At  present  (1914)  they  are  92,600  and  43,000 
respectively.  .^ .  .  There  have  been  far  more  baptisms 
administered  in  the  last  two  years  than  in  any  previous 
two,  and  more  than  the  total  of  any  seven  years  prior  to 
1909." 

Eeferring  to  the  training  to  which  a  convert  is 
subjected  prior  to  baptism,  Dr.  Sharrocks  writes : 

"Our  methods  recognize  three  classifications  of 
Christians ;  new  believers,  catechumens  and  communicants. 
Any  one  who  attends  services  and  wishes  his  name  recorded, 
is  enrolled  as  a  new  believer.  If  he  remains  faithful  and  at 
the  end  of  six  months  passes  a  satisfactory  examination,  he 
is  received  as  a  catechumen.  He  is  then  held  on  probation 
for  one  year,  after  which  time  he  is  again  examined  to 
ascertain  the  progress  made,  and  if  his  examination  and 
past  conduct  are  satisfactory  he  is  baptized  and  becomes  a 
communicant.  The  sum  of  these  three  grades  constitute 
what  we  call  the  total  adherentage."  ^ 

A  similar  period  of  probation  is  arranged  by  the  other 
missions.  In  the  case  of  the  Anglican  mission,  the  period 
is  not  less  than  three  years. 

The  Presbyterian  Mission  (American  Church,  North) 
began  its  work  in  1884,  when  Dr.  H.  N.  Allen  (afterwards 
U.S.A.  Minister  to  Corea)  was  put  in  charge  of  a  Govern- 
ment hospital.2  His  medical  work  paved  the  way  for  direct 
evangelistic  efforts,  which  were  begun  by  the  Eev.  H.  G. 
Underwood  in  the  following  year.  Since  then  the  work 
has  spread  rapidly  throughout  the  central  portion  of  the 
peninsula,  from  Kang-kei  in  the  north  to  Fusan  in  the 
south.      Sessions,    Presbyteries    and  a  General    Assembly 

^  The  Christian  Movement  in  Japan,  1914,  p.  378  f. 
2  See  p.  31. 


COREA  253 

have  been  established,  and  43,000  members  have  been 
baptized.  The  doctrine  of  self-support  has  been  so  success- 
fully taught  that  during  the  year  ending  June  30,  1913, 
the  Christians  contributed  £15,240  towards  the  support 
of  this  Church.  A  theological  college,  attended  by  200 
students,  has  been  established  at  Pyengyang,  from  which 
101  pastors  have  already  been  ordained.  The  total  num- 
ber of  Corean  pastors  is  219,  all  of  whom  are  supported 
by  the  Corean  congregations. 

At  Phyong  An,  said  to  be  "  the  most  wicked  city  in 
Corea,  the  Presbyterian  Church  has  a  regular  Sunday 
congregation  of  over  1500  converts,  and  its  mid-week 
prayer  meeting  has  an  average  attendance  of  1100." 

The  Severance  Hospital  at  Seoul  is  supported  by 
several  missionary  societies;  see  p.  30. 

In  1892  the  Presbyterian  Church,  South  (U.S.A.),  com- 
menced missionary  work  in  the  southern  part  of  Corea. 
In  1907  a  united  "Corean  Presbyterian  Church"  was 
constituted,  and  at  the  same  time  7  Coreans  were  ordained, 
being  the  first  ordained  ministers  of  the  Presbyterian 
Corean  Church. 

The  Australian  Preshyterian  and  the  Canadian  Presby- 
terian Churches  have  also  missionaries  in  Corea  ;  the  former 
began  work  in  1889  in  the  south  Kyengsang  province, 
the  stations  of  the  latter  are  in  North-East  Corea  and  in 
Manchuria. 

The  Methodist  Ujnscopal  Mission  (U.S.A.). — The  first 
Protestant  missionary  to  enter  Corea  was  the  Eev.  E.  S. 
Maclay,  who  landed  in  Chemulpo  on  June  23,  1884. 
As  a  result  of  his  favourable  report  two  missionaries  were 
appointed  before  the  close  of  the  year,  and  reached  Corea 
in  April  1885.  This  mission  supports  a  hospital  for 
women  and  two  dispensaries  in  Seoul,  and  has  more  than 
100  churches  in  the  district,  which  includes  Seoul  and 
Chemulpo.  It  has  also  a  considerable  amount  of  work  in 
the  district  of  Pyengyang.  The  mission  has  a  joint- 
college  with  the  Presbyterians  in  Pyengyang.  It  has  made 
work  among  women  a  special  feature  of  its  programme. 


254  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Iq  1895  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South,  estab- 
lished a  mission.  It  has  stations  at  Seoul,  Song  Do  and 
Won  San. 

The  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  North  and  South, 
have  combined  to  form  one  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
in  Corea. 

Anglican  Missions. — Dr.  Corfe,  who  had  been  a  chaplain 
in  the  Navy,  was  consecrated  as  a  Bishop  for  Corea  on 
All  Saints'  Day,  1889,  and  with  a  small  staff  of  clergy 
settled  at  Seoul.  At  the  end  of  seven  years,  which  were 
largely  occupied  in  learning  the  languages  required  for 
missionary  work  in  Corea,  the  first  convert  was  baptized. 
This  convert  was  ordained  in  1914  as  the  first  Corean 
deacon  in  connection  with  the  Anglican  Church.  The 
missionary  who  prepared  him  for  baptism  is  now  the 
Bishop  in  Corea.  The  centres  of  the  Anglican  Mission 
are  at  Seoul,  Chemulpo,  Kanghwa,  Suwon  and  Chinchun. 
It  also  supports  work  amongst  the  Japanese  at  Fusan  and 
Chemulpo,  and  a  mission  hospital  at  Chemulpo,  and  takes 
its  share  in  the  work  of  the  Severance  Hospital  at  Seoul. 
The  Anglican  Mission  is  supported  by  the  S.P.G. 

A  small  "  Orthodox  "  Mission  has  been  opened  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Eussian  Archimandrite,  who  resides  on 
premises  adjoining  the  Eussian  Consulate.  There  are  in 
addition  several  other  smaller  Protestant  missions. 

At  the  Continuation  Committee  held  at  Seoul  in 
March  1913,  four  Presbyterian  and  two  Methodist 
missions  reported  11,700  baptisms  as  having  taken  place 
during  the  previous  year.  These  four  Presbyterian 
missions  have  had  a  united  General  Council  since  1905. 
The  Y.M.C.A.  works  in  close  touch  with  the  various 
missionary  societies.  Bishop  Turner  (of  the  Anglican 
Mission)  was  president  of  its  Board  of  Directors  until  his 
death,  and  his  successor  is  a  member  of  its  Board.  Prince 
Ito  took  part  in  laying  the  foundation-stone  of  its  new 
buildings  in  Seoul  in  1907. 

Medical  Missions. — The  Presbyterian,  Anglican  and 
Methodist   Missions    have  each  of   them   several   mission 


COREA  255 

hospitals,  which  have  done  much  to  further  the  spread  of 
the  Christian  faith.  The  Severance  Hospital  in  Seoul 
(which  was  founded  by  Mr.  L.  H.  Severance)  in  connection 
with  the  Presbyterian  Mission,  North,  has  a  medical  train- 
ing college  attached  to  it.  The  following  missions  con- 
tribute one  or  more  workers  to  the  teaching  staff  of  the 
college: — American  Presbyterian  Missions,  N.  and  S., 
American  Methodist  Missions,  N.  and  S.,  Australian 
Presbyterian  Mission  and  the  S.P.G.  Over  30  qualified 
doctors  have  already  been  trained  in  this  college,  and  the 
supply  is  likely  to  increase  during  the  coming  years. 

The  students,  who  must  be  Christians  well  recom- 
mended by  their  clergy  or  pastors,  take  part  in  Sunday- 
school  teaching  and  other  work  connected  with  the 
churches  to  which  they  are  attached. 


X. 

MALAYSIA. 

The  Malay  Peninsula. 

In  1813  the  Rev.  R.  Milne,  who  was  sent  out  by  the 
L.M.S.  to  join  Morrison  in  China,  was  refused  permission 
to  land  at  Macao  and  eventually  settled  at  Malacca,  where 
he  established  an  Anglo-Chinese  college  for  the  training  of 
Chinese  and  of  European  students  of  the  Chinese  language. 
Before  his  death  in  1822  Dr.  Milne  had  helped  to  train 
several  European  missionaries  and  had  established  schools 
for  Malays  and  Chinese,  besides  accomplishing  a  large 
amount  of  translational  work  and  printing.  Attempts 
were  also  made  to  start  missionary  work  at  Singapore  and 
Penang. 

The  Straits  Settlements  are  situated  on  the  west  and 
south  coasts  of  the  Malay  Peninsula,  and  consist  of  the 
islands  of  Singapore,  Penang,  and  Pankor,  with  the  districts 
of  Malacca,  Province  Wellesley,  and  the  Bindings  on  the 
mainland.  Besides  these  there  are  the  protected  states  of 
Perak,  Selangor,  and  Negri  Sembilan.  The  total  population 
of  this  area  is  about  5 2,0 00,0 00, of  whom  about  8000  are 
Europeans.  The  Straits  Settlements  were  included  in  the 
Anglican  diocese  of  Calcutta  till  1869,  when  they  became 
part  of  the  diocese  of  Labuan  and  Sarawak.  In  1909  they 
became  the  diocese  of  Singapore.  On  the  coast  there  are 
a  large  number  of  Chinese  and  Tamil  immigrants. 

An  Anglican  mission  was  established  by  a  local  com- 
mittee in  1857  and  was  transferred  to  the  S.P.G.  in  1861. 
The  Rev.  W.  H.  Gomes,  a  Singalese  who  had  been  trained 

at  Bishop's  College,  Calcutta,  laboured  for  over  fifty  years 

256 


MALAYSIA  257 

as  a  missionary,  first  in  Borneo  and  after  1872  in  Singa- 
pore. He  translated  the  Prayer  Book  and  several  other 
books  into  Malay  and  the  colloquial  Chinese  spoken  in 
Singapore.  The  S.P.G.  started  or  supported  work  in 
Malacca  (1860),  Penang  (1880),  Province  Wellesley 
(1879),  Perak  (1884),  and  Selangor  (1887).  Towards  the 
support  of  the  "  missionary  chaplain,"  whom  the  S.P.G. 
appointed  for  the  Province  Wellesley,  a  Presbyterian  Com- 
mittee formed  in  Penang  contributed  £200  per  annum 
from  1879  to  1890. 

In  these  missions,  which  are  still  in  their  infancy, 
missionary  work  has  been  carried  on  and  schools  established 
amongst  the  Malays,  Chinese,  and  Tamils,  with  the  assist- 
ance of  Chinese  and  Tamil  missionaries  or  catechists. 
There  are  about  8000  European  and  1200  Asiatic 
members  of  the  Anglican  communion  in  the  diocese  of 
Singapore. 

Work  is  also  being  carried  on  by  the  English 
Presbyterians  and  by  the  A.M.E.  mission.  The  Methodist 
Anglo-Chinese  school  at  Singapore  has  over  1000  pupils, 
amongst  whom  a  number  of  conversions  to  Christianity 
have  occurred. 

The  English  Presbyterian  mission  which  is  represented 
in  Singapore  carries  on  most  of  its  work  in  China  and 
Formosa.  Its  work  in  Singapore  is  among  the  Chinese 
immigrants,  many  of  whom  have  become  Christians  in 
connection  with  this  mission. 

The  E.C.  missions  in  the  Malay  Straits  are  in  the 
diocese  of  Malacca,  which  contains  35,000  E.C.  Christians, 
including  Europeans.  In  Singapore  there  are  churches  for 
Europeans,  Eurasians,  Chinese,  and  Tamils,  also  a  large 
Brothers'  school  with  a  staff  of  British  and  American 
teachers. 

In  Malacca  the  Portuguese  Church  is  over  300  years 
old,  but  the  descendants  of  those  who  originally  worshipped 
in  it  are  Christians  only  in  name. 

Siam. — The  population  of  Siam  (6,686,000)  contains 
a  large  intermixture  of  Chinese,  Burmese,  and  immigrants 
17 


258  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

from  the  Malay  States.  The  Siamese,  or  Thai,  who  are 
the  dominant  race,  number  about  2,000,000,  and  have 
been  Buddhists  for  many  centuries.  Closely  related  to  the 
Siamese  are  the  Laos,  who  occupy  the  tributary  states  in 
the  north  of  the  country.  The  Laos-speaking  Thai  number 
about  10,000,000,  about  2,000,000  of  whom  live  within 
the  kingdom  of  Siam.  The  remainder  live  in  Burma, 
French  Indo- China,  and  Yiinnan.  A  large  proportion  of 
them  are  not  Buddhists.  The  Chinese  population  in  Siam 
number  nearly  2,000,000. 

There  was  apparently  a  Nestorian  bishopric  in  Siam  in 
early  times  (see  p.  165),  but  of  the  Christianity  which  it 
represented  no  trace  remains. 

The  E.C.  Church  has  Apostolic  Vicariates  of  Siam 
(1662)  and  of  Laos  (1899).  In  the  former  there  are  45 
priests  and  23,000  Christians;  in  the  latter  there  are  33 
priests  and  12,000  Christians.  The  work  is  supported 
by  the  Paris  F.M.  Society. 

The  American  Presbyterians,  who  began  missionary 
work  in  1840,  have  two  missions,  one  to  the  Siamese  and 
the  other  to  the  Laos-speaking  people  in  the  north.  In 
Siam  they  have  a  station  at  Bangkok,  and  at  three  or  four 
other  places,  their  work  being  chiefly  of  an  educational 
character.  They  have  also  some  medical  missions.  Their 
work  amongst  the  Siamese  has  made  very  slow  progress, 
and  in  1909  the  number  of  communicants  was  under 
1000.  The  great  difficulty  which  has  been  experienced 
in  finding  native  evangelists  is  attributed  by  their  mission- 
aries to  the  teaching  of  Buddhism  that  religion  is  a 
personal  matter  and  that  no  one  is  responsible  for  the 
religion  of  his  neighbour.  The  mission  to  the  Laos, 
which  was  commenced  in  1867,  has,  after  a  period  ot 
severe  persecution,  attained  considerable  success,  and 
what  may  almost  be  termed  a  mass  movement  towards 
Christianity  has  begun  amongst  them.  In  1913  more 
than  3000  new  converts  were  obtained.  The  central 
station  of  the  mission  is  at  Chieng  Mai. 

French  Indo-China,  in  which  many  of  the  Laos  live,  is 


MALAYSIA  259 

closed  by  the  French  Government  to  the  work  of  Protest- 
ant missionaries.  Two  Swiss  "  Brethren,"  who  are  the 
only  Protestant  workers  there,  report  a  great  desire  on  the 
part  of  the  Laos  to  receive  Christian  teaching. 

Dutch  East  Indies,  etc. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  work  of  the  Dutch 
missions  in  the  seventeenth  and  the  first  half  of  the 
eighteenth  centuries  (see  p.  46).  At  the  beginning  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  the  total  number  of  Christians  through- 
out the  Dutch  East  Indies  was  reduced  to  about  100,000. 
The  great  majority  of  the  descendants  of  the  old  Christians 
belong  to  the  Gevestigte  Gemeenten,  which,  with  the 
European  congregations,  form  the  Protestant  Church, 
as  recognized  by  the  Government  in  the  Dutch  East 
Indies. 

The  three  chief  missionary  organizations  in  the  Dutch 
archipelago,  which  includes  Sumatra,  Java,  the  North 
Celebes  and  Dutch  Borneo,  and  a  few  small  islands,  are 
{a)  The  Established  Church  (Protestantsche  Kerk); 
(&)  the  Ehenish  Mission;  and  (c)  the  Dutch  missionary 
societies. 

(a)  The  Established  Church  includes  about  300,000 
members,  many  of  whom  are  the  descendants  of  those  who 
became  Christians  in  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
centuries. 

(h)  The  Ehenish  Mission  works  amongst  the  Bataks 
of  Sumatra,  in  the  island  of  Nias,  and  in  Borneo.  It  has 
72  principal  stations  and  about  100  missionaries. 

(c)  There  are  five  large  and  three  smaller  Dutch 
missionary  societies  at  work  in  the  islands  which  form 
the  Dutch  East  Indies.  Of  these  societies,  the  Nether- 
lands Missionary  Society  carries  on  work  in  Java,  the 
Celebes,  and  East  Sumatra ;  the  Eeformed  Church  works 
in  Java  and  Sumba ;  the  Utrecht  Association  works  in 
Java  and  Dutch  New  Guinea.  Its  staff  includes  three 
medical  missionaries. 


260  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  number  of  converts  from  Islam  throughout  the 
Dutch  archipelago,  chiefly  in  Java  and  Sumatra,  is  about 
40,000.  Most  of  these  are  the  result  of  the  work  of  the 
Ehenish  Mission. 

Sumatra. — Assemani  quotes  Cosmas  (Indicopleustes), 
who  wrote  about  A.D.  535,  as  saying: 

"  In  the  island  of  Taprobana  {i.e.  Sumatra),  towards  inner 
India,  where  the  Indian  Ocean  is,  there  is  a  Church  of 
Christians  where  clergy  and  believers  are  found.  Whether 
(there  are  Christians)  beyond  (that  is  in  Southern  China)  I 
do  not  know."  ^ 

There  does  not  appear  to  exist  any  later  reference  to 
this  early  Christian  Church  in  Sumatra. 

In  1861  the  Ehenish  Missionary  Society,  working  in 
conjunction  with  a  Dutch  society,  started  work  amongst  the 
Bataks  in  the  interior  of  Sumatra.  The  Batak  Christian 
community  now  numbers  30,000,  14,000  having  been 
baptized  during  1913.  Thirty  Bataks  have  been  ordained, 
and  work  is  carried  on  at  41  centres  and  500  out-stations. 
There  are  55  European  missionaries,  and  27,500  Batak 
children  are  being  educated  in  500  schools.  A  training 
school  for  native  evangelists  and  teachers  and  a  hospital 
have  been  erected  in  the  valley  of  Si  Lidung,  and  on  the 
shore  of  Lake  Toba  there  is  a  leper  asylum  and  a  large 
industrial  school.  The  majority  of  the  population  of 
Sumatra  are  Moslems,  amongst  whom  the  Ehenish  Mission 
has  most  encouraging  work. 

The  A.M.E.C.  has  a  missionary  in  East  Sumatra,  and 
the  Ehenish  Mission  carries  on  work  in  Nias  and  in  other 
islands  along  the  western  coast  of  Sumatra. 

There  is  a  small  E.G.  mission  manned  by  5  priests, 
who  are  Capuchins. 

There  are  over  7000  Christian  converts  from  Islam, 
but  despite  the  number  of  conversions  to  Christianity 
which  have  taken  place,  Islam  is  making  rapid  progress 

^  Assemani,  Bihliolhcca  Orientalis,  iii.  2,  437.     There  is  a  copy  in  the 
British  Museum  (see  p.  165  n.). 


MALAYSIA  261 

amongst  the  pagan  population.  Islam  first  appeared 
in  Sumatra  about  A.D.  1200,  and  in  Java  about  two 
centuries  later.  Thousands  of  pilgrims  go  annually  from 
Java  and  Sumatra  to  Mecca,  and  on  their  return  become 
active  propagandists  of  their  religion. 

Java  contains  a  population  of  about  30,000,000. 
The  Established  Church  ministers  to  the  Europeans  and 
to  about  5000  native  Christians.  In  addition  to  that 
done  by  the  Dutch  societies,  missionary  work  is  carried  on 
by  the  German  Neukirchen  Mission  in  North  Central  Java, 
by  the  Salvation  Army  in  Central  Java,  and  by  the  A.M.E.C. 
in  Batavia.  The  Neukirchen  Mission  has  11  principal 
stations. 

The  principal  centre  of  missionary  work  in  the  island 
is  Modjowarno. 

The  Dutch  societies  have  appointed  a  joint  "  missionary 
consul "  in  Batavia  to  look  after  their  common  interests. 

The  Jesuits  have  a  mission  in  Batavia,  connected  with 
which  there  are  58  priests  and  34,000  Christians. 

The  vast  majority  of  the  Javanese  are  Moslems,  but 
these  are  more  approachable  here  and  in  Sumatra  than  in 
any  other  part  of  the  world.  A  Moslem  university  has 
been  established  in  Java,  and  an  edition  of  the  Koran  in 
Javanese  has  been  issued.  The  Hindu  dynasty  which 
formerly  ruled  in  Java  was  overthrown  by  the  Moslems  in 
the  fifteenth  century,  and  the  religion  which  now  prevails 
has  absorbed  many  of  the  tenets  of  both  Hinduism  and 
Buddhism. 

Borneo. 

In  British  North  Borneo,  the  sultanate  of  Brunei, 
Labuan,  and  Sarawak,  which  have  a  population  of  about 
550,000,  the  S.P.G.,  the  A.M.E.C,  and  the  Basel  Society 
are  at  work. 

When  James  Brooke  became  Eajah  of  Sarawak  in  1841, 
he  appealed  to  the  English  universities  to  undertake 
missionary  work,  and  as  a  result  of  his  appeal  the  Borneo 
Church  Mission  was  formed.      Its  work  was  taken  over  by 


262  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

the  S.RG.  in  1854.  The  first  missionary,  who  was  also  a 
doctor  (Eev.  E.  T.  McDougall),  was  consecrated  as  Bishop 
in  1855.  Dr.  McDougall,  on  his  arrival  in  1848,  started 
work  amongst  the  Europeans  and  Chinese  at  Kuching,  and 
in  1851  the  work  was  extended  to  the  Sea  Dyaks  at 
Banting.  By  1867  the  Dyak  converts  in  Sarawak 
numbered  1000.  The  Sea  Dyaks  are  an  uncivilized 
people,  a  whole  community  living  under  a  single  roof  and 
practising  cruel  and  barbarous  customs.  The  acceptance 
of  Christianity  has  effected  marvellous  changes  in  their 
habits  of  life  and  in  many  cases  in  their  characters.  The 
Anglican  mission  has  always  been  undermanned,  and  some 
stations  which  had  been  opened  have  had  to  be  abandoned 
through  lack  of  workers.  Nevertheless,  much  encouraging 
work  has  been  accomplished.  The  number  of  baptized 
Christians  is  about   7000. 

In  1883  a  Chinese  catechist  was  sent  by  the  S.P.G. 
from  Kuching  to  North  Borneo  to  work  amongst  his 
fellow-countrymen,  and  in  1888  the  Eev.  W.  H.  Elton 
opened  a  mission  station  at  Sandakan  as  a  centre  of  work 
among  Europeans  and  natives.  There  is  now  a  congrega- 
tion of  100  Chinese  Christians  at  Sandakan,  and  in  1890 
a  mission  to  Chinese  was  opened  at  Kudat,  where  there 
were  1000  Christians,  of  whom  600  were  converts  of  the 
Basel,  the  Berlin,  the  Wesleyan,  the  Baptist,  and  other 
missions  in  China.  The  two  Chinese  congregations  there 
are  superintended  by  a  Chinese  priest.  In  1 8  9  6  a  mission 
station  at  Kaningan  was  opened  to  work  amongst  the 
Muruts  in  the  centre  of  North  Borneo,  but  owing  to  lack 
of  workers  this  work  has  not  been  developed. 

The  island  of  Labuan,  off  the  north  coast  of  Borneo, 
was  ceded  to  Great  Britain  in  1846.  Its  inhabitants  are 
chiefly  Malays  from  Borneo  and  Chinese.  A  church  was 
opened  in  1866,  and  some  missionary  work  has  been 
carried  on  amongst  the  Chinese. 

At  Jesselton,  on  the  west  coast  of  Borneo,  the  mis- 
sionary chaplain  ministers  to  the  East  Indian  and  Chinese 
Christians  as  well  as  to  the  Europeans. 


MALAYSIA  263 

Roman  Catholic  Missions. — In  1687,  Father  Ventimiglia 
was  commissioned  by  Pope  Innocent  xi.  to  preach 
Christianity  in  Borneo,  but  no  trace  of  his  labours  has 
survived.  In  1857,  Father  Cuarteron,  who  had  been 
originally  a  sea-captain,  landed  as  a  missionary  in  Labuan, 
but  he  returned  to  Eome  in  1879  and  soon  afterwards 
died.  In  1881  a  mission  was  undertaken  by  the  Society 
for  Foreign  Missions  of  Mill  Hill,  England.  The  two 
centres  of  work  are  at  Labuan  and  Kuching  in  Sarawak. 
There  are  22  priests,  2  lay  brothers,  15  sisters,  and  about 
3000  baptized  Christians  connected  with  this  mission. 

Dutch  Borneo, 

In  1835  the  Ehenish  Mission  began  work  amongst  the 
Dyaks,  who  were  fierce  savages  and  "  head-hunters."  The 
missionaries  succeeded  in  establishing  eight  stations  on 
the  rivers,  but  in  1859,  when  the  Mohammedan  Malays 
rebelled  against  the  Dutch,  the  Dyaks  became  involved, 
and  all  the  inland  mission  stations  were  destroyed  and 
seven  of  the  mission  staff  were  murdered.  The  work  was 
started  again  in  1866  and  is  carried  on  now  at  nine 
stations,  at  which  the  number  of  Christians,  who  include 
some  immigrant  Chinese,  is  already  considerable. 

The  A.M.E.C.  has  two  missionaries  in  Dutch  Borneo, 
who  are  stationed  at  Pontianak. 

The  B.C.  Church  has  a  mission  manned  by  Capuchins 
which  is  served  by  16  priests  and  has  876  Christian 
converts.  The  chief  centres  of  its  work  are  at  Singkawang 
and  Sedijiram. 

Celebes, — The  majority  of  the  inhabitants  in  this  island 
are  Mohammedans.  Amongst  the  Alifurs  in  the  north- 
east of  the  island  some  remarkable  missionary  work  has 
been  accomplished  by  the  Netherlands  Missionary  Society. 
When  Hellendoorn,  its  first  representative,  began  missionary 
work  here  in  1826,  he  found  traces  of  Christianity,  the 
results  of  some  earlier  mission.  The  work  has  developed 
in  a  marvellous  way,  and  has  transformed  the  conditions 


264  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

of  life  under  which  the  people  live.  The  native  Christian 
Church  which  has  been  formed  includes  over  150,000 
Christian  Alifurs.  Owing  to  lack  of  funds  the  Netherlands 
Missionary  Society  has  had  to  transfer  this,  its  most  suc- 
cessful mission  in  the  Dutch  archipelago,  to  the  Dutch 
Colonial  State  Church,  which  took  the  missionaries  into  its 
service  as  assistant  preachers  and  now  appoints  pastors. 
The  Netherlands  Missionary  Society  continues  to  support  a 
small  part  of  the  work. 

Near  to  Celebes  are  the  Sangir  and  Talaut  Islands, 
where  extensive  missionary  work  has  been  done.  Gossner 
missionaries  from  Germany,  together  with  some  Dutch 
assistants,  resuscitated  the  Christian  community  which  had 
survived  from  earlier  days.  The  mission,  which  is  now 
managed  by  a  committee  connected  with  a  society  in 
Batavia,  reports  44,000  converts.  Their  moral  condition 
appears  to  leave  much  to  be  desired. 

The  Netherlands  Missionary  Society  laboured  success- 
fully in  the  Molucca  group,  especially  in  Ceram  and  Amhon. 
On  the  withdrawal  of  this  society  in  1865  the  congrega- 
tions became  attached  to  the  Netherlands  State  Church. 
In  the  islands  of  Burn  and  Almaheira,  where  work  is 
carried  on  by  the  Utrecht  Missionary  Union,  there  are 
about  2000  Christians.  In  the  Lower  Sunda  Islands  there 
are  about  50,000  Christians  belonging  to  the  Dutch  State 
Church.  Missionary  work  is  carried  on  in  Sawu  by  the 
Netherlands  Missionary  Society  and  in  Suviha  by  the 
Eeformed  Church,  the  number  of  Christians  in  the  two 
islands  being  about  6000. 

The  Philippine  Islands  number  in  all  about  2500,  the 
largest  being  Luzon  and  Mindanao.  In  the  former  is 
situated  the  town  of  Manila.  The  population,  about 
8,000,000,  consists  of  various  Malay  tribes  who  have 
driven  the  early  population,  the  Negritos,  into  the  more 
inaccessible  parts  of  the  islands.  The  non-Christian 
population,  which  includes  many  Chinese  and  Mohammedans, 
numbers  about  700,000.  Most  of  the  non-Christians  are 
to  be  found  in  the  island  of  Luzon. 


MALAYSIA  265 

The  islands  were  discovered  by  Magellan  in  1521.  In 
1565  the  Spaniards  commenced  their  conquest  and  forcible 
Christianization,  but  owing  to  the  good  influence  exerted  by 
the  Spanish  missionaries,  the  conquest  was  effected  with- 
out the  massacres  and  depopulation  of  the  country  which 
accompanied  the  Spanish  conquests  in  Mexico  and  South 
America. 

The  first  Spanish  settlers  included  an  Augustinian  friar 
named  Urdaneta,  who  formed  one  of  the  party  of  Spaniards. 
The  friars  soon  became  a  political  as  well  as  a  religious 
factor  in  the  development  of  the  islands,  and  in  1768 
Governor  Anda  addressed  to  the  king  a  memorial  charging 
the  friars  with  "  commercialism,  neglect  of  their  spiritual 
duties,  oppression  of  the  natives,  opposition  to  teaching 
Spanish,  and  interference  with  civil  officials  and  affairs." 
The  Augustinians  were  followed  by  the  Franciscans  in 
1577,  the  Jesuits  arrived  in  1581,  the  Dominicans  in 
1587,  and  the  Eecolletos  in  1606.  The  Jesuits  became 
the  richest  of  the  Orders,  and  their  wealth  was  in  part  the 
cause  of  their  expulsion  in  1767.  They  were,  however, 
allowed  to  return  in  1852  on  the  condition  that  they 
would  devote  themselves  to  missions  in  Mindanao  and  to 
the  higher  education  of  the  Filipinos. 

Of  the  present  condition  of  the  E.G.  Ghurch  in  the 
Philippines  the  American  Bishop  Brent  writes : 

"  The  parishes  are  served,  except  in  a  few  centres,  by 
Filipino  priests,  many  of  whom  I  have  met,  some  of  them 
being  worthy  of  respect  as  pastors,  though  the  best  are 
incompetent  and  ignorant  according  to  our  mode  of  reckon- 
ing. .  .  .  But  there  is  another  less  pleasing  (aspect  of 
Ghristian  life)  to  contemplate.  No  one  but  a  blind  partizan, 
afraid  to  recognize  and  face  painful  facts,  seriously  denies 
any  longer  the  grave  moral  laxity  that  has  grown  up  and 
still  lives  under  the  shadow  of  Ghurch  and  convento 
(parsonage)  in  the  Philippines.  Inch  by  inch  I  have  been 
forced  back  by  the  pressure  of  facts  from  the  position  I 
originally  held  that  there  was  a  minimum  rather  than  a 
maximum  of  immorality.  The  cumulative  testimony  that 
has  come  to  me  has  been  chiefly  incidental  and  unsought, 


266  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

containing  in  it  the  witness  of  Eoman  Catholics  of  good 
standing.  ...  No  doubt  the  Church  has  in  the  past  spasmodi- 
cally struggled  with  this  besetting  sin  of  the  Filipino.  But 
in  spite  of  everything,  by  degrees  its  filthy  stream  trickled 
into  the  sanctuary,  and  apathetic  acquiescence  in  a  seemingly 
hopeless  situation  ensued.  In  my  judgment  the  rift  in  the 
lute  is  in  the  ecclesiastical  ordinance,  which  enforces  celibacy 
upon  the  priesthood  under  such  racial  and  climatic  con- 
ditions as  obtain  here.  .  .  .  Wherever  similar  climatic  and 
racial  conditions  obtain,  we  are  confronted  with  a  similar 
story  of  shame — Mexico,  Central  America,  South  America, 
and  the  Azores."  ^ 

Since  the  American  occupation,  an  Independent  Filipino 
Church,  composed  of  Catholics  who  have  seceded  from 
Eome,  has  been  formed  under  the  leadership  of  Gregorio 
Aglipay,  who  is  styled  Obispo  Maximo,  or  chief  bishop 
of  the  movement.  It  claims  to  have  about  3,000,000 
adherents. 

In  1898,  when  the  Philippine  Islands  were  annexed  by 
the  U.S.A.,  the  country  was  for  the  first  time  opened  to 
missionary  work  other  than  that  connected  with  the  E.C. 
Church. 

In  1901  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  America 
organized  missionary  work  in  the  islands,  and  Dr.  C.  H. 
Brent  was  appointed  as  the  first  Anglican  Bishop.  The 
mission  has  started  work  amongst  the  Chinese  in  Manila, 
but  its  chief  sphere  of  work  is  amongst  the  Bontoc 
Igorrotes,  who  number  about  70,000  and  who  are  pagans. 
The  centre  of  the  work  is  at  Sagada.  The  confidence  of 
many  of  this  tribe  has  been  gained,  and  there  is  a 
prospect  of  a  considerable  advance  in  the  near  future. 

An  attempt  is  also  being  made  to  start  work  amongst 
the  Moros,  who  number  275,000,  and  who  have  been 
Mohammedan  from  a  date  prior  to  the  Spanish  occupation 
of  the  Philippines. 

Work  has  also  been  begun  amongst  the  Bagabos  in  the 
island  of  Mindanao. 

In    1901    there  also    arrived   representatives    of   the 

^  Religious  Conditions  in  the  Fhilijijpine  Islands.     Published,  1904. 


MALAYSIA  267 

American  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  the  Baptists,  the 
United  Brethren,  the  Congregationalists,  and  the  Disciples 
of  Christ.  These  missions,  which  work  to  a  large  extent 
amongst  the  E.C.  Christians,  arranged  to  start  in  different 
areas.  Of  these,  the  A.M.E.C.,  which  has  the  largest 
amount  of  work,  has  30  missionaries,  about  30,000 
members,  and  130  churches  or  chapels.  Its  sphere  of 
work  lies  in  Luzon,  to  the  north  and  north-east  of  Manila. 


XI. 
WESTERN   AND  CENTRAL   ASIA. 

Asia  Minor. 

We  have  not  space  in  which  to  sketch  the  gradual  spread 
of  Christianity  in  Asia  Minor.  Dr.  Harnack  in  his 
Expansion  of  Christianity  suggests  four  categories  in 
which  the  countries  within  or  adjacent  to  the  Roman 
Empire  might  be  placed  in  the  early  decades  of  the  fourth 
century. 

"  1.  Those  in  which  Christianity  numbered  nearly  one- 
half  of  the  population  and  represented  the  most  widely 
spread,  or  even  the  standard,  religion.  2.  Those  in  which 
Christianity  formed  a  very  material  portion  of  the  popula- 
tion, influencing  the  leading  classes  and  the  general  culture 
of  the  people,  and  being  capable  of  holding  its  own  with 
other  religions.  3.  Those  in  which  Christianity  was 
sparsely  scattered.  4.  Those  in  which  the  spread  of 
Christianity  was  extremely  weak,  or  where  it  was  hardly 
to  be  found  at  all."  ^ 

Under  1  is  placed  the  entire  province  of  what  is  now 
known  as  Asia  Minor,  with  the  exception  of  some  out-of- 
the-way  districts ;  also  Armenia  and  the  city  of  Edessa. 
Under  2 :  Antioch,  Coelo-Syria,  and  Cyprus.  Under  3  : 
Palestine,  Phoenicia,  Arabia,  parts  of  Mesopotamia,  and 
perhaps  Western  Persia.  Under  4 :  the  towns  of  ancient 
Philistia,  Persia,  India,  and  Scythia. 

By  far  the  larger  number  of  the  Christians  were 
dwellers  in  towns,  and  the  strongest  centre  of  the  Chris- 

1  Vol.  ii.  p.  457. 

268 


WESTERN   AND   CENTRAL    ASIA  269 

tian  Church  at  this  time  was  Antioch,  where  in  a.d.  320, 
of  a  population  of  200,000  half  were  Christians.^  The 
only  known  instance  in  which  a  whole  district  had 
become  Christian  is  Armenia,  where  at  the  close  of  the 
third  century  Christianity  had  so  far  become  the  religion 
of  the  country  that  the  King  of  Armenia  proposed  to 
make  it  the  State  religion.  At  the  beginning  of  the  fourth 
century  the  Christian  population  of  the  world  was  probably 
about  4,000,000. 

The  capture  of  Damascus  by  the  Arabs  in  A.D.  634 
was  speedily  followed  by  the  subjugation  of  the  greater 
part  of  Asia  Minor.  The  lot  of  the  Christian  population, 
which  was  comparatively  a  mild  one  under  the  early 
Moslem  rulers,  was  much  worse  when  the  Ottoman 
Turks  became  the  dominant  power  in  the  eleventh  century. 
Since  then  the  Armenian  and  other  Christians  have  been 
subjected  to  an  almost  unceasing  persecution.  We  may 
well  hope  that  the  present  century  will  see  a  great  change 
in  their  condition,  and  will  witness  the  final  end  of  the 
religious  persecution  which  has  continued  for  a  thousand 
years. 

As  a  result  of  the  persecutions  suffered  by  the  Chris- 
tian population  of  Syria  and  Palestine,  it  is  probable  that 
at  the  time  of  the  Crusades  the  whole  Christian  popula- 
tion did  not  exceed  half  a  million  in  number.  Since  the 
wars  of  the  Crusades  the  Christians  have  made  little  effort 
to  convert  their  Mohammedan  conquerors. 

In  1820  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions  (A.B.C.F.M.)  began  to  send  missionaries 
to  various  parts  of  the  Turkish  Empire,  their  primary 
object  being  to  evangelize  Moslems  and  Jews.  In  course 
of  time  the  missionaries  came  to  realize  that  the  un- 
satisfactory lives  of  many  of  the  Christians  belonging  to 
the  Oriental  Churches  rendered  their  task  of  influencing 
Moslems  a  hopeless  one,  and  they  were  led  by  the  force 
of  circumstances  to  devote  a  large  portion  of  their  time 
and  attention  to  the  education  of  the  Greek  and  Armenian 

^  See  The  Missionary  Prospect ,  pp.  61  tf. 


270  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Christians,  amongst  whom  they  were  living.  The  Robert 
Noble  College,  which  they  established  in  Constantinople, 
and  the  schools  and  colleges  at  Smyrna,  Tarsus,  Aintab, 
and  other  centres,  have  had  a  wide-reaching  influence  upon 
the  pupils  who  have  attended  them,  and  who  have  included 
a  considerable  number  of  Moslems.  Although  the  work  of 
the  A.B.C.F.M.  has  not  resulted  in  the  conversion  of  any 
appreciable  number  of  Moslems,  it  has  indirectly  pre- 
pared the  way  for  the  missionary  work  which  will  become 
possible  under  the  new  political  conditions  that  have  lately 
arisen.  The  pioneers  and  many  of  the  leaders  of  this 
mission  have  disclaimed  any  wish  to  proselytize  or  to  form 
a  Protestant  Church  in  Turkey,  and  have  as  a  general  rule 
endeavoured  to  induce  those  whom  they  have  influenced, 
or  who  have  been  educated  in  their  schools,  to  continue 
as  members  of  their  own  churches.  Thus  Dr.  S.  L.  Barton, 
the  Secretary  of  the  A.B.C.F.M.,  writes : 

"  The  missionaries  have  never  had  any  other  purpose  or 
expectation  than  that  the  Gregorian,  Greek,  and  Syrian 
Churches,  with  their  noble  histories  and  splendid  services, 
should  be  perpetuated  .  .  .  they  hope  to  see  the  churches 
so  reformed  from  within  .  .  .  that  they  would  reach  the 
point  where  they  could  present  to  the  Moslems  with  whom 
they  were  in  such  close  contact  the  beauty  and  attractive- 
ness of  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  and  so  win  them  as  His 
followers."  ^ 

In  1870  the  Presbyterians  of  America  organized  a 
separate  mission,  and  the  A.B.C.F.M.  left  to  them  the  work 
in  Syria  and  in  Persia,  retaining  under  their  own  control 
the  missions  which  had  been  started  in  Macedonia,  Asia 
Minor,  Armenia,  Kurdistan,  and  Northern  Syria. 

The  chief  educational  centre  in  Syria  is  the  Protestant 
College  at  Beyrout  (1865),  which,  though  not  under  the 
control  of  the  Presbyterian  mission,  serves  as  its  chief 
educational  centre. 

The  C.M.S.  has  stations  at  Mosul  and  Bagdad,  which 
are  worked  in  connection  with  its  missionary  work  in  Persia. 

1  The  East  and  The  West,  April  1909. 


WESTERN   AND    CENTRAL   ASIA  271 

E.G.  missions  are  carried  on  in  many  parts  of  the 
Turkish  Empire,  but  the  efforts  of  the  various  Orders  by 
which  they  are  conducted  are  almost  entirely  devoted  to 
winning  over  other  Christians  to  the  Eoman  Church,  and 
no  attempts  are  made  to  convert  Mohammedans. 

There  are  several  missionary  organizations,  such  as  the 
British  Syrian  Schools  and  Bible  Mission,  which  carry  on 
good  work  amongst  the  Christian  population  of  Asia 
Minor  and  Syria,  but  their  work  is  not  of  a  definitely 
missionary  character, 

Palestine. 

The  C.M.S.  began  work  in  Palestine  in  1851.  The 
chief  centres  of  its  work  are  at  Jerusalem,  Nazareth, 
Nablous,  Jaffa,  Gaza,  Haifa,  and  at  Salt  on  the  east  of 
the  Jordan.  At  all  the  stations  special  efforts  are  made 
by  women  missionaries  to  reach  Mohammedan  women  in 
their  homes.  The  staff  includes  six  medical  missionaries. 
In  1841  a  bishopric  in  Jerusalem  in  connection  with  the 
Anglican  Church  was  founded.  The  bishop,  by  the  help  of 
his  diocesan  fund,  is  endeavouring  to  develop  missionary 
work  amongst  Mohammedans.^ 

The  U.F.C.  of  Scotland  has  a  Mission  at  Tiberias. 

Prior  to  the  war  the  missionaries  reported  a  change  of 
attitude  in  favour  of  Christianity  on  the  part  of  many  of 
the  common  people,  especially  in  the  districts  in  which 
medical  missions  had  been  stationed.  It  seems  likely  that 
after  the  war  the  opportunities  of  the  Christian  mission- 
aries will  be  greatly  increased. 

Akabia. 

Missionary  work  in  Arabia  is  still  in  an  initial  stage, 
and  there  is  urgent  need  of  additional  missions  and 
missionaries  in  this  long-neglected  land. 

In  1885   the  Hon.  Ion  Keith-Falconer,  who  had  been 

^  See  art.   "  The  Anglican   Bishopric  in  Jerusalem  "  in  The  East  and 
The  Westy  October  1914. 


272  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

the  Eeader  in  Arabic  at  Cambridge  University,  made  a 
preliminary  visit  to  Aden,  and  in  1887  he  and  his  wife 
and  Dr.  B.  S.  Cowan  settled  at  Sheikh-Othman,  ten  miles 
from  Aden.  Four  months  later  Keith- Falconer  died. 
The  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland  has  since  carried  on 
the  mission,  and  is  endeavouring  to  promote  medical  and 
educational  work  amongst  the  Arabs  and  Somalis. 

In  1891  Bishop  French,  who  had  formerly  been  Bishop 
of  Lahore,  went  to  live  in  Muscat  in  the  hope  of  getting 
into  touch  with  the  Arabs,  but  after  four  months'  residence 
there  he  died.  He  was  a  great  scholar,  and  was  one  of  the 
greatest  missionaries  connected  with  the  C.M.S.  who  had 
worked  in  India. 

In  1889  an  undenominational  mission  was  established 
in  America  to  support  work  among  Mohammedans  in 
Arabia.  This  mission  was  taken  over  by  the  Eeformed 
(Dutch)  Church  in  America  in  1894.  In  addition  to  its 
work  at  Muscat  and  Bahrein  (an  island  in  the  Persian 
Gulf),  it  has  stations  outside  the  Arabian  peninsula  at 
Bussorah  and  Koweyt.  Its  staff  consists  of  14  men  and 
9  women.  Five  of  its  staff  are  doctors.  Dr.  S.  M.  Zwemer, 
who  is  one  of  its  staff,  is  a  well-known  writer  and  speaker 
on  missions  to  Mohammedans. 

The  population  of  Arabia  is  reckoned  at  about 
8,000,000,  of  whom  6,000,000  are  wholly  unreached  by 
Christian  missions. 

Persia. 

By  the  end  of  the  third  century  Christian  missions  had 
made  considerable  progress  in  Persia,  chiefly  as  the  result 
of  efforts  made  by  Syrian  and  Egyptian  missionaries, 
although  the  Christians  suffered  grievous  persecution  under 
Shapur  ii.  One  of  the  bishops  who  attended  the  Council 
of  Nic^ea,  A.D.  325,  signed  as  John  the  Persian.  After 
the  separation  between  the  Christians  of  the  East  and 
the  West  the  Persian  Church  began  to  display  considerable 
missionary  activity  in  the  regions  which  lay  farther  to  the 
East.     By   641   the  Arabs  had  overrun  the  country  and 


WESTERN   AND    CENTRAL   ASIA  273 

had  enforced  the  acceptance  of  Islam.  Christianity, 
however,  lingered  on  for  a  long  time.  The  last  of  the  race 
of  Christian  kings  was  killed  about  1202  by  Genghis  Khan, 
who  married  a  daughter  of  this  king,  and  was  induced  by 
her  to  show  tolerance  towards  the  Christians.  A  Nestorian 
patriarch  ruled  the  Church  during  the  reigns  of  seven 
Mogul  kings,  but  after  this  Christianity  almost  disappeared. 
In  1811,  Henry  Martyn  spent  ten  months  in  Shiraz  and 
translated  the  New  Testament  into  Persian.  In  1829  the 
Eev.  C.  G.  Pfander  of  the  Basel  Mission  visited  Persia,  and 
wrote  a  book  entitled  Mizan-el-Hakh  ("The  Balance  of 
Truth  "),  in  which  he  compared  Christianity  with  Islam,  and 
which  has  had  a  large  circulation  both  in  Persia  and  in 
other  Mohammedan  countries.  As  a  result  of  the  visit  of 
Dr.  Joseph  Wolff  (a  converted  Jew)  in  1827,  the  A.B.C.F.M. 
opened  a  mission  in  1834  amongst  the  Nestorian  Chris- 
tians. This  mission  was  transferred  in  1871  to  the  Pres- 
byterian Board,  which  has  also  undertaken  work  amongst 
Kurds  and  Mohammedans  in  Northern  and  Western  Persia. 
In  1869  the  Eev.  E.  Bruce  visited  Ispahan  and  Julfa, 
and  in  1875  the  C.M.S.  undertook  to  support  and  extend 
the  work  which  Mr.  Bruce  had  started.  A  medical 
missionary  was  sent  out  in  1879,  and  women  were  added 
to  the  staff  in  1891.  Kerman  was  occupied  in  1897, 
Yezd  in  1898,  and  Shiraz  in  1900.  A  large  proportion 
of  the  work  centres  in  the  men  and  women's  hospitals 
at  Ispahan,  Yezd,  and  Kerman.  In  1912  an  Anglican 
bishop  for  Persia  was  appointed.  A  considerable  and 
slowly  increasing  number  of  converts  from  Islam  have  been 
obtained,  and  there  is  good  reason  to  hope  that  in  the  near 
future  the  work  of  Christian  missions  will  make  much  more 
rapid  progress  than  has  been  possible  in  the  past. 

Baluchistan. 

In  Baluchistan,  missionary  work  is  represented  by  a 
single  station  belonging  to  the  C.M.S.  at  Quetta.     Con- 
nected with  the  hospital  there  are  two  dispensaries  in  the 
i8 


274  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Kalat  State.  There  are  also  out-stations  in  Baluchistan 
at  Sibi  and  Chaman.  According  to  the  last  C.M.S.  report, 
"  a  small  mass  movement  among  the  same  class  of  people 
as  is  being  influenced  so  widely  in  the  Punjab  is  in  progress, 
and  a  willingness  to  learn  was  displayed  such  as  had  not 
been  previously  known." 

Afghanistan. 

The  earliest  trace  of  Christianity  in  what  now 
constitutes  Afghanistan  is  the  attendance  of  a  bishop  of 
Herat  at  the  Council  of  Seleucia  in  424.  In  the 
thirteenth  century  there  was  a  Nestorian  bishop  of  Kabul 
who  was  subject  to  the  Patriarch,  whose  seat  was  suc- 
cessively situated  at  Seleucia,  Ctesiphon,  Bagdad,  and 
Alkosh.  The  Christians  at  Kabul  and  other  places  in 
Central  Asia  were  exterminated  apparently  by  Timur 
(1336—1405).  There  were  Armenian  Christians  who 
were  expelled  from  Kabul  as  lately  as  1880,  but  there 
is  no  evidence  to  show  that  these  were  descendants  of  the 
Afghan  Christians  of  an  earlier  date. 

At  the  present  time  no  direct  missionary  work  is  being 
attempted.  On  more  than  one  occasion  an  Afghan  who 
has  become  a  Christian  in  India  has  attempted  to  preach 
the  Christian  faith  to  his  fellow-countrymen,  but  in  each 
case  the  missionary  has  been  murdered  or  has  disappeared. 
Dr.  Pennell,  whilst  working  at  Bannu  near  the  border  of 
this  country,  came  into  touch  with  many  Afghans,  and 
through  their  instrumentality  a  knowledge  of  Christian 
teaching  has  penetrated  into  several  parts  of  Afghanistan. 

The  story  of  one  of  the  few  who  have  dared  to  preach  the 
Gospel  in  Afghanistan  is  worth  telling,  as  it  illustrates  at 
once  the  superb  courage  of  an  Afghan  Christian  and  the 
difficulties  which  lie  in  the  way  of  those  who  would 
undertake  missionary  work  in  that  country.  "  Qazi  Abdul 
Karim  came  of  a  good  Afghan  family  and  was  a  very 
learned  man.  He  became  a  Christian  at  Quetta.  In  1907 
he  crossed  over  the  frontier  with  the  object  of  preaching 
the  Gospel  to  his  fellow-countrymen,  and  was  seized  by 


WESTERN    AND    CENTRAL   ASIA  275 

Afghan  soldiers.  These  brought  him  before  the  Governor 
of  Kandahar.  He  was  offered  rewards  and  honours  if  he 
would  recant  and  accept  Mohammedanism,  and  when  he 
refused  he  was  cast  into  prison,  loaded  with  eighty  pounds 
of  chains.  He  was  examined  by  the  Amir  .  .  .  but 
remained  firm  in  his  confession  of  Christianity.  Finally 
he  was  marched  off  to  Kabul.  ...  He  had  to  walk  loaded 
with  chains  and  with  a  bit  and  bridle  in  his  mouth  from 
Kandahar  to  Kabul,  while  any  Mohammedan  who  met  him 
on  the  way  was  to  smite  him  on  the  cheek  and  pull  a  hair 
from  his  beard.  After  reaching  Kabul  .  .  .  (according  to 
a  report  which  purported  to  be  that  of  an  eye-witness)  he 
was  set  at  liberty,  and  set  out  alone  for  India." 

Missions  of  the  Greek  Chtirch  in  Central  Asia. 

Since  the  rise  and  spread  of  Islam  very  little  missionary 
work  has  been  accomplished  by  any  of  the  churches  of  the 
East,  except  the  Eussian  Church,  and  in  view  of  the 
continuous  persecution  by  the  Mohammedan  Governments, 
missionary  enterprise  in  Moslem  countries  has  been 
practically  impossible.  By  the  Eussian  branch  of  the 
Greek  Church,  however,  a  large  amount  of  missionary  work 
has  been  done,  though,  with  two  exceptions,  this  work  has 
been  done  within  the  Eussian  Empire.^  Eussian  missions 
may  be  said  to  have  begun  during  the  reign  of  the  first 
Czar,  John  the  Terrible  (1533-84),  who  began  to 
extend  the  Eussian  Empire  towards  the  East.  The 
Mohammedan  kingdom  of  Kazan  was  conquered  in  1552, 
and  that  of  Astrakhan  in  1556,  and  the  colonization  and 
conversion  of  these  territories  went  on  together.  The 
subjugation  of  Siberia,  which  was  begun  in  1580,  was 
not  completed  till  1697.  At  the  present  time  it  has 
a  population  of  about  eight  and  a  half  millions,  half 
a  million  of  whom  are  still  heathen.  In  Tartary  and 
Turkestan  the  Eussian  Church  is  making  progress,  although 

1  For  an  account  of  the  missions  of  the  Russian  Church  see  article  by  R. 
Eubank  in  The  East  and  The  West,  April  1904  ;  also  Russian  Orthodox 
Missions,  by  E.  Smirnoff,  published  by  Rivington. 


276  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

the  majority  of  their  inhabitants  are  Mohammedans. 
Special  mention  should  be  made  of  two  missionaries  of 
recent  times,  John  Veniaminoff  and  Macarius.  Of  the 
former,  Mr.  Smirnoff  wrote  that  he  was  "  the  most  famous 
missionary  of  the  nineteenth  century,  and  that  not  only  of 
the  Eussian  Church  but  of  the  whole  Christian  world." 
He  started  missions  in  Siberia,  then  in  Kamtchatka,  and 
afterwards  in  several  different  districts  of  Eastern  Siberia. 
In  1850  he  was  consecrated  as  bishop  under  the  name 
of  Innocent,  and  in  1867,  after  thirty-three  years  of  work, 
in  the  prosecution  of  which  he  had  endured  almost  every 
privation  that  can  fall  to  the  lot  of  a  pioneer  missionary, 
he  was  made  metropolitan  of  Moscow.  In  1870  he 
founded  the  Orthodox  Missionary  Society  to  assist  in  the 
conversion  of  the  non-Christian  peoples  within  the  limits 
of  Eussia,  and  in  1879  he  died. 

The  Empress  of  Eussia  became  patron  of  the  Mission 
Society,  and  the  metropolitan  of  Moscow  became  president. 
Its  work  is  conducted  on  the  same  lines  as  those  of  the 
English  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel.  Public 
interest  is  sustained  by  sermons  and  public  meetings,  and 
grants  are  made  from  its  funds  to  various  missions  in 
accordance  with  their  needs.  The  archimandrite  Macarius 
founded  the  Altai  Mission  in  Siberia  in  1830,  and  helped 
to  organize  mission  work,  which  has  since  been  carried  on 
with  a  large  amount  of  success. 

Mention  should  also  be  made  of  the  remarkable  mission- 
ary work  initiated  by  Nicholay  Ivanowitch  Ilminsky 
(1822-91)  amongst  the  tribes  in  Eastern  Eussia  and  in 
Siberia.  During  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century 
Moslem  propaganda  had  made  great  progress  amongst  these 
tribes,  but  by  the  labours  of  Ilminksy,  who  became  Professor 
of  Eastern  languages  at  Kazan  University,  the  Bible  was 
translated  into  Tartar,  and  a  most  hopeful  mission  has 
been  started  amongst  tribes  who  are  hovering  between 
Christianity  and  Islam. ^ 

*  For  a  detailed  account  of  this  mission  see  article  by  Professor  Alexev 
Yakovlev  in  The  East  and  The  West,  July  1913. 


XII. 

AFRICA. 

The  problem  with  which  Christian  missions  is  confronted 
in  the  continent  of  Africa  differs  materially  from  that 
which  is  presented  in  any  other  large  section  of  the 
mission  field.  The  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  this 
continent  are  more  backward,  and  from  a  social  and 
intellectual  point  of  view  less  developed  than  are  those  of 
any  other  continent.  Whilst  it  is  true  to  say  that  many 
of  the  South  Sea  Islanders  might  vie  with  the  worst  of  the 
West  African  cannibals  in  savagery  and  degradation,  the 
campaign  which  Christian  missionaries  had  there  to  wage 
was  far  less  complex,  consisting  as  it  did  of  a  series  of 
isolated  battles,  whereas  the  missionary  campaign  in  Africa 
has  to  be  fought  on  a  battle  front  which  reaches  for 
thousands  of  miles. 

If,  as  we  believe,  the  physical  features  of  the  earth 
have  been  adapted  by  God  with  a  view  to  promote  the 
welfare  of  its  inhabitants,  there  is  no  outstanding  feature 
of  its  configuration  for  which  we  have  more  reason  to  be 
grateful  than  the  great  Sahara  Desert.  It  is  not  often 
realized  how  important  a  part  has  been  played  by  this 
desert  in  the  evolution  of  human  history.  This  desert  has 
for  decades  of  centuries  prevented  the  establishment  of 
free  intercourse  between  the  peoples  of  Europe  and  of 
Central  Africa,  and  has  kept  them  apart  until  the  time 
should  arrive  when  the  white  races  had  learned  to  recog- 
nize their  obligation  to  bear  the  black  man's  burden. 
By  the  negative  influence  exerted  by  its  existence  it 
has  affected  the  religious,  moral,  and  social  development  of 
the  nations  of  Europe  and  indirectly  of  the  whole  world. 

«77 


278  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Had  this  desert  not  existed,  the  African  races  of  the  far 
interior  would  long  ago  have  had  free  access  to  the  shores 
of  the  Mediterranean,  and  would  have  been  brought  into 
close  contact  with  the  stronger  and  more  virile  races  which 
inhabited  its  northern  shores.  The  inevitable  result  would 
have  been  the  enslavement  of  large  numbers  of  the 
African  races,  and  a  mixed  coloured  population  would 
have  come  into  existence,  which  might  have  delayed 
the  progress  of  European  and  of  the  world's  civilization 
for  centuries.  The  desert,  by  interposing  an  impassable 
barrier,^  deprived  the  races  in  the  Equatorial  regions  of 
the  stimulus  which  contact  with  the  European  races  might 
have  provided,  but  at  the  same  time  saved  Europe  from 
being  confronted  with  a  race  problem  immeasurably  more 
difficult  than  that  raised  by  the  presence  of  the  negroes  in 
the  United  States. 

From  the  missionary  standpoint  we  have  reason  to  be 
grateful  that  the  battle  between  Christianity  and  paganism 
which  has  now  to  be  joined  is  not  handicapped  by  the 
existence  on  any  large  scale  of  the  pagan  Christianity 
which  is  to  be  found  in  Abyssinia  to-day,  and  which  existed 
for  a  time  on  the  Congo  and  on  the  Zambesi.  Central 
Africa  has  had  long  to  wait  for  the  advent  of  Christian 
missionaries  ;  but  in  view  of  the  past  history  of  Christianity 
in  Europe,  and  of  the  meagre  success  which  attended  the 
missions  of  the  Dominicans  and  Jesuits  on  the  west  and 
east  coasts  in  the  sixteenth  century,  it  is  doubtful  whether, 
if  free  intercourse  between  Europe  and  Central  Africa  had 
been  established  before  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  the  prospects  of  Christian  missions  would  be  any 
brighter  than  they  now  are. 

The  missionary  problem  in  Africa  is  complicated  by 
the  fact  that  here,  to  a  greater  extent  than  in  any  other 
continent,  Mohammedan  missionaries  are  to  be  found  side 
by  side  with  those  who  represent  the  Christian  faith.  Up 
to   the    present  time    Islam  has  hardly  penetrated  south 

^  The  writer  of  this  volume  spent  the  greater  part  of  a  year  in  a  vain 
effort  to  cross  from  Tripoli  to  Lake  Chad. 


AFRICA  279 

of  the  equator,  and  it  rests  with  the  Christian  Church  to 
say  whether  in  the  near  future  the  wave  of  Mohammedan 
propaganda  shall  be  checked  in  its  southward  course,  as  it 
has  been  checked  in  Uganda,  or  whether  the  pagan  tribes 
in  Central  Africa  near  and  to  the  south  of  the  equator  are 
to  become  Moslems. 

From  the  Christian  standpoint  the  least  hopeful 
prospect  at  the  present  time  is  in  West  Central  Africa. 
Here,  as  will  appear  in  our  references  to  particular  missions, 
partly  in  consequence  of  the  enervating  climate  and  partly 
owing  to  the  degradation  caused  by  centuries  of  intercourse 
with  European  slave-traders  and  gin -importers,  the  tribes 
who  live  on  or  near  the  coast  are  found  to  be  appallingly 
deficient  in  moral  stamina  and  strength  of  character.  One 
result  is  that  Christian  missionaries  are  heavily  handicapped 
when  competing  with  the  representatives  of  Islam,  the 
demands  made  by  which  are  much  less  exacting  than  are 
those  of  Christianity.  If  the  Christian  faith  is  ever  to 
become  the  religion  of  West  Africa  and  to  stay  the 
progress  of  Islam,  this  result  will  be  achieved  not  so  much 
by  the  development  of  the  Christian  communities  which 
are  now  to  be  found  on  the  coast,  as  by  the  conversion  of 
the  Hausas  and  of  one  or  two  other  races  in  the  interior, 
who  possess  a  strength  of  character  which  is  not  to  be 
discovered  amongst  the  peoples  in  the  coastal  districts. 
If,  as  seems  by  no  means  impossible,  a  Christian  Church 
can  be  established  in  Northern  Nigeria  in  the  compara- 
tively near  future,  it  may  well  be  that  from  the  members 
of  this  Church  African  missionaries  and  evangelists  will  be 
forthcoming  who  will  spread  the  knowledge  of  their  new 
faith  amongst  the  other  weaker  races,  and  will  be  able,  by 
their  example  and  influence,  to  impart  to  them  the  stability 
and  strength  of  character  which  they  now  lack.  No  part 
of  the  world  has  been  more  grievously  wronged  by  Europe 
than  has  West  Africa.  To  no  part  of  the  world,  therefore, 
are  the  Christians  of  Europe  under  a  greater  obligation  to 
share  with  its  peoples  the  blessings  which  their  religion 
can  bestow. 


280  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

In  our  survey  of  Christian  missions  in  Africa  we 
shall  begin  with  Egypt,  as  being  the  country  which  was 
probably  first  influenced  by  Christian  missionaries,  and, 
travelling  in  the  first  instance  westwards,  shall  proceed 
round  the  continent. 

Before  beginning  our  survey  it  may  be  well  to  give 
here  a  rough  estimate  of  the  number  of  Christians 
throughout  the  continent  of  Africa.  The  following  figures 
are  taken  from  the  Statistical  Missionary  Atlas,  issued  in 
connection  with  the  Edinburgh  Conference  (1910),  and 
include  all  Christian  adherents  other  than  Europeans : 

North-West  Africa  (Tripoli  to  Morocco)       ,        •  224 

West  Africa 248,702 

South- West  Africa  (Cameroons  to  German  South- 

West  Africa) 103,201 

South  Africa 1,144,926 

South  Central  Africa 92,583 

East  Africa 118,107 

1,707,741 

To  the  above  should  be  added  about  800,000  Coptic 
Christians  in  Egypt. 

According  to  the  statistics  supplied  by  this  atlas,  it 
appears  that  the  Christian  adherents  in  Africa  increased 
from  576,530  in  1900  to  1,707,741  in  1910,  that  is 
at  the  rate  of  196  per  cent. 

Egypt. 

It  is  probable  that  Christianity  entered  Africa  by  way 
of  Egypt.  Eusebius^  records  a  tradition  that  St.  Mark 
preached  the  gospel  in  Egypt  and  founded  "  churches 
first  of  all  at  Alexandria  itself."  This  tradition  appar- 
ently existed  as  early  as  the  beginning  of  the  third 
century,  but  there  is  no  other  confirmatory  evidence. 
The  Christian  Church  "emerged  into  daylight"  in  the 
episcopate  of  Demetrius,  A.D.  183-231.  It  was  then 
firmly  established  and  exercised  a  wide  influence.  By  the 
end  of  the  second  century  there  were  a  large  number  of 

*  Historiea  Ecclesiasiica,  ii.  p.  16.    • 


AFRICA   ( EGYPT)  281 

Christian  centres  in  Egypt  and  the  Tliebais.  Although  in 
early  times  Egypt  apparently  had  fewer  bishops  than 
other  countries  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  its 
Christians,  Athanasius  is  able  to  state  in  a.d.  303  that  there 
were  nearly  one  hundred  bishops  in  Egypt,  the  Thebais, 
Libya  and  Pentapolis.  The  last  thirty  years  of  the  third 
century  witnessed  the  development  and  spread  of  monasti- 
cism  for  which  Egypt  afterwards  became  famous. 

One  reason  why  the  Church  in  Egypt  increased  more 
rapidly  and  developed  on  more  stable  foundations  than  it  did 
in  many  other  countries,  was  the  fact  that  the  Bible  was 
translated  into  at  least  three  Coptic  dialects,  of  which 
the  oldest,  the  Upper  Egyptian,  dates  from  the  second  half 
of  the  third  century.  The  earliest  monks  in  the  Nitrian 
desert  probably  possessed  copies  of  the  Bible  in  their  own 
language. 

It  does  not  lie  within  the  scope  of  this  book  to  trace 
the  history  of  Christianity  in  Egypt  down  to  the  time 
when  Islam  was  introduced  and  promulgated  by  force  of 
arms  in  the  seventh  century.  We  pass  on  to  note  the 
efforts  which  have  been  made  in  modern  times  to  convert 
the  Moslems  of  Egypt  to  the  Christian  faith. 

The  American  United  Presbyterian  Mission  began  work 
amongst  Copts  and  Moslems  in  1854.  Although  the 
work  lies  chiefly  among  Coptic  Christians,  the  missionaries 
have  by  their  medical,  educational  and  colportage  work 
exerted  a  Christian  influence  upon  Moslems,  especially 
in  the  Delta. 

The  Church  Missionary  Society  began  work  for  Moslems 
in  1882,  the  year  of  the  British  occupation.  The  centre 
of  their  work  is  at  Cairo,  where  the  Eev.  D.  Thornton,  who 
died  in  1 9  0  7,  did  much  to  interpret  Christianity  to  Moslems, 
and  to  pave  the  way  for  further  work  on  their  behalf. 
In  Old  Cairo  the  C.M.S.  has  a  self-supporting  hospital 
and  dispensary  with  two  English  and  two  native  doctors. 
Closely  associated  with  this  is  Dr.  Harpur's  itinerating 
medical  mission,  which  is  centred  in  a  floating  dispensary 
on  the  Nile.     In  Cairo  and  three  out-stations  the  C.M.S. 


282  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

has  a  staff  of  clergy  whose  work  lies  amongst  the  more 
highly  educated  Moslems  and  amongst  the  students  at  the 
Al  Azhar  University.  The  Mission  issues  a  newspaper  in 
Arabic  which  has  a  considerable  circulation.  It  has  estab- 
lished friendly  relations  with  the  Coptic  Church,  which  it  is 
the  desire  of  the  C.M.S.  clergy  to  strengthen  and  help. 

Other  Protestant  societies  at  work  are  the  N.  Africa 
Mission,  the  Egypt  General  Mission  and  the  Sudan  Pioneer 
Mission  (German). 

The  Boman  Catholic  missions  in  Egypt  contain  about 
60,000  Christians  (including  Europeans).  The  missionaries 
are  from  the  Lyons  Society  for  African  Missions  and  the 
Minor  Franciscans  of  Eome. 

According  to  the  census  taken  in  1907,  there  are 
10,466,000  Mohammedans  and  881,000  Christians  in 
Egypt. 

The  Egyptian  Sudan. 

The  Egyptian  Sudan,  which  is  under  Anglo-Egyptian 
rule,  contains  about  1,000,000  square  miles  and  a  popu- 
lation of  about  3,500,000.  Of  these  about  2,500,000 
are  Mohammedans  and  990,000  pagans.  Of  the  Christians, 
who  number  about  6000,  3000  belong  to  the  Oriental 
Churches,  2000  to  the  K.C.  Church  and  1000  are 
Anglicans  or  Protestants. 

Connected  with  the  B.C.  missions,  which  are  supported 
by  the  Algerian  Missionary  Society  and  the  English  Foreign 
Missionary  Society  (Mill  Hill),  there  are  14  priests,  10 
schools  and  4  orphanages. 

In  the  Northern  Sudan,  under  Bishop  Gwynne  of 
Khartoum,  the  C.M.S.  has  a  medical  mission  with  an 
English  doctor  at  Khartoum  and  schools  under  women- 
workers  in  and  around  that  city. 

As  we  proceed  south  from  Khartoum,  the  first  mission 
station,  which  is  420  miles  south,  has  recently  been  opened 
by  the  Sudan  United  Mission]  100  miles  farther  south, 
the  American  United  Presbyterians  have  a  station  manned 
by  7  missionaries  at  the  junction  of  the  Sobat  and  the 


AFRICA   (north-west)  283 

Nile;  200  miles  farther  south,  the  CJLS.  has  a  station 
with  4  missionaries  at  Malek.  The  next  station,  which  is 
300  miles  farther  south,  is  the  C.M.S.  station  of  Gulu  in 
XJcranda.  West  of  the  Nile,  in  the  Bahr-el-Ghazal  province 
of  the  Sudan,  are  two  C.M.S.  stations  at  Zan  and  Xambio. 
On  the  west  bank  of  the  Nile  are  three  Austrian  E.G. 
missions. 

North-West  Africa. 

Amongst  those  present  in  Jerusalem  on  the  Day  of 
Pentecost    were    Jews  "from    the  parts   of    Libya    about 
Gyrene."     It  is  possible  that  some  of  these  acted  as  the 
tirst  Christian  missionaries  to  North-West  Africa.     Before 
the  end  of  the  second  century  the  Ghurch  of  Garthage  was 
firmly  established  and  was  apparently  more  vigorous  than 
the  Ghurch  of  Eome  or  of  Alexandria.     In  North-West 
Africa,  as  in  Italy,  the  majority  of  the  early  converts  were 
won  from  those  who  had  come  into  contact  with  Greek  or 
Eoman  culture.     Their  numerical  increase  may  be  roughly 
gauged  by  the  increase  in  the  number  of  Christian  bishops. 
Harnack  reckons  the  number  of    bishops  in  North-West 
Africa  in  a.d.  220  as  from  70  to  90,  in  a.d.  250  as  nearly 
150,  in  A.D.  300  as  hardly  less  than  250,  and  in  A.D.  400 
as  about   600.     When  in  the  seventh  century  the  forces 
of  Islam  spread  over  North-West  Africa,  they  eventually 
swept  out  of  existence  this  Ghurch  which  had  once  been 
one  of  the  largest  Churches  in  Christendom.     It  has  been 
suggested  that  the  complete  disappearance  of  this  Church 
can    best    be    explained  by   the    fact  that    it    had   been 
conspicuously  lacking  in  missionary  zeal,  and  had  failed 
to    make    any    serious    effort    to    commend    its    faith    to 
the    native    tribes  in    the  interior.      In  support    of    this 
suggestion   it    may  be  pointed    out  that    the  voluminous 
writings  of  the  two  great  bishops  of  North-West  Africa, 
Cyprian  of  Carthage  and  Augustine  of  Hippo,  apparently 
contain  no  references  to  the  duty  of    evangelizing   these 
races.      Whilst    it    is    dangerous    to    rely  upon    negative 
evidence,  and    the   traces    of  ancient    Christianity    found 


284  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

in  the  interior  of  Tunis  and  Algeria  suggest  at  least  a 
possibility  of  the  former  existence  of  churches  recruited 
from  the  native  tribes,  it  is  impossible  to  deny  that  mis- 
sionary enthusiasm,  especially  during  the  fourth,  fifth  and 
sixth  centuries,  was  at  a  low  ebb,  or  to  contest  the  state- 
ment that  a  Church  which  makes  no  effort  to  do  missionary 
work  is  itself  in  danger  of  its  life.  Two  other  reasons 
which  may  be  alleged  to  account  for  the  disappearance  of 
this  Church  are — its  failure  to  translate  the  Bible  into  the 
language  spoken  by  the  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
country,  and  the  internecine  quarrels  that  long  disgraced 
the  Christians  of  North-West  Africa  prior  to  the  destruction 
of  their  Church.     Harnack  writes  : 

"  Eapidly  as  Christianity  struck  down  its  roots  into  the 
soil  of  Africa  and  spread  itself  abroad,  it  was  as  rapidly 
swept  away  by  Islam.  The  native  Berber  population  was 
but  superficially  Christianized,  so  far  as  it  was  Christianized 
at  all.  The  next  stratum,  that  of  the  Punic  inhabitants, 
appears  to  have  been  Christianized  for  the  most  part,  but 
as  the  Punic  language  never  got  possession  of  the  Bible,  the 
Christianizing  process  was  not  permanent.  The  third 
stratum,  that  of  the  Greco-Eoman  population,  became  in 
all  likelihood  entirely  Christian  by  slow  degrees.  But  it 
was  too  thin."  ^ 

There  exists  no  parallel  in  the  history  of  Christendom 
to  the  catastrophe  which  befel  the  Church  in  North  Africa. 
In  411  there  met  at  Carthage  a  conference  of  Christian 
bishops,  numbering  in  all  565,  nearly  all  of  whom  came 
from  North-West  Africa,  and  each  of  whom  represented 
a  considerable  Christian  community.  The  conference  was 
summoned  to  discuss  a  dispute  relating  to  details  of  Church 
discipline.  Impossible  as  the  assembled  bishops  found  it 
to  agree  on  the  subject  which  they  discussed,  there  was  at 
least  one  point  on  which  no  variety  of  opinion  existed. 
They  all  alike  believed  that  the  triumph  of  Christianity  in 
North-West  Africa  was  already  assured.  What  a  storm 
of  indignation  would  have  greeted  the  speaker  who  should 
*  Expansion  of  Christianity,  vol.  ii.  p.  435. 


AFRICA   (north-west)  285 

have  dared  to  forecast  the  future  and  to  suggest  that 
before  many  centuries  had  elapsed  the  Faith  represented 
by  the  565  assembled  bishops  and  by  300  other  bishops 
in  North- West  Africa  who  were  not  present  at  the 
conference  would  have  been  swept  away ! 

Amid  much  that  is  dark  and  discouraging  in  the  later 
history  of  North-West  Africa,  one  story  has  been  preserved 
which  reminds  us  of  the  heroic  martyrs  at  Carthage  at  a 
still  earlier  date.  An  Arab  boy  named  Geronimo,  who 
had  been  baptized  and  taught  the  Christian  faith,  was 
captured  together  with  his  master  and  ordered  to  recant 
the  profession  of  his  faith.  On  his  refusal  to  do  so,  twenty- 
four  hours  were  allowed  him  in  which  to  change  his  mind. 
He  was  then  brought  before  the  Sultan  of  Algiers,  who 
was  engaged  in  superintending  the  erection  of  a  fort.  In 
the  wall  of  the  fort  was  a  space  partly  filled  with  cement. 
Geronimo  was  told  that  unless  he  would  abandon  his 
Christian  faith  he  would  be  laid  in  the  cement  and  built 
up  in  the  wall.  He  replied  that  he  would  not  deny  his 
faith.  He  was  accordingly  placed  face  downwards  in  the 
cement  with  his  hands  and  feet  tied,  and  the  builders 
proceeded  with  their  work.  The  fort  in  which  Geronimo 
was  immured  (in  1509)  was  destroyed  by  the  French  in 
1853,  and  at  the  spot  which  was  identified  by  tradition,  a 
skeleton  of  a  boy  was  found  embedded  in  the  cement,  lying 
prostrate  in  the  position  described. 

Towards  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century  Eaymond 
Lull  attempted  to  preach  the  Christian  faith  in  Tunis  and 
at  Bougiah,  but  without  any  visible  results.  He  died  on 
board  a  Genoese  ship  in  1315  at  the  age  of  eighty,  from 
injuries  received  whilst  preaching  at  Bougiah.     See  p.  466. 

The  population  of  North-West  Africa,  that  is  of  Tripoli, 
Tunis,  Algeria  and  Morocco,  is  about  14,000,000. 
Protestant  missions,  which  are  chiefly  represented  by  the 
"  North  Africa  Mission,"  were  started  about  forty  years  ago, 
and  a  few  isolated  conversions  of  Moslems  have  occurred. 
The  attitude  of  the  French  Government  in  Tunis  and 
Algeria  has  been  uniformly  hostile  alike  to  Protestant  and 


286  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

to  Eoman  Catholic  missions.  The  latter  have,  however, 
been  allowed  to  care  for  and  educate  a  number  of  Arab 
orphans  and  to  establish  the  Order  of  the  White  Fathers 
in  Algiers,  from  which  missionaries  have  been  sent  out  to 
the  hinterland  of  Algeria  and  to  other  parts  of  Africa. 
In  1876  three  priests  who  were  sent  to  Timbuctoo  were 
murdered  before  they  reached  their  destination.  In  1881 
three  more  priests  were  murdered  by  the  Tuaregs  at 
Ghadames.  At  a  later  date  armed  bands  of  mission- 
workers  were  sent  by  Cardinal  Lavigerie,  the  Head  of  the 
Eoman  Mission  in  Algeria,  with  instructions  to  establish 
themselves  at  some  of  the  wells  in  the  interior  and  to 
endeavour  to  preach  the  Christian  faith  to  those  who 
frequented  the  wells.  On  the  death  of  Cardinal  Lavigerie 
this  method  of  work  was  abandoned. 


Morocco. 

In  Morocco  the  North  Africa  Mission  supports  2  5  mis- 
sionaries and  6  mission  hospitals  or  dispensaries.  There 
are  36  KG.  priests  in  Morocco,  but  these  only  minister  to 
the  resident  European  population.  The  Jews  number 
about  150,000. 

In  the  Spanish  possession  of  Eio  DE  Oro  there  are  no 
Christian  missions.  To  the  south  of  this  come  the  French 
possessions.  On  the  Senegal  Eiver  there  is  a  small 
Protestant  mission  of  the  Paris  Society.  In  French  Guinea 
there  is  a  small  Anglican  mission  called  the  Bio  Pongo 
Mission  which  is  assisted  by  the  S.P.G.  It  was  started  in 
1855  and  is  manned  and  organized  by  the  Anglican  Church 
in  the  West  Indies.  Connected  with  the  E.C.  mission  (1897) 
there  are  2 1  priests  and  5680  Christians.  In  Senegambia 
and  in  the  whole  of  the  French  territory  as  far  south  as 
Dahomey,  which  has  a  population  of  about  9,000,000, 
there  are  17,000  Christians  and  37  priests  connected  with 
the  E.C.  missions.  In  Portuguese  Guinea,  which  has  a 
population  of  about  1,000,000,  there  is  a  small  R.C.  mission. 


AFRICA   (sierra    LEONe)  287 

In  the  British  colony  of  Gambia,  which  lies  on  both 
sides  of  the  Gambia  Eiver,  there  is  a  population  of  91,000, 
of  whom  35,000  are  Mohammedans  and  50,000  pagans. 
Of  the  Christians,  who  number  5600,  3800  are  Eoman 
Catholics  and  1800  are  Protestants.  The  JVJLS.  has  9 
stations,  2  missionaries  and  1500  professed  Christians. 


Sierra  Leone. 

Sierra  Leone  was  bought  by  the  African  Company  in 
1790,  and  was  handed  over  to  the  British  Government  in 
1808  in  order  to  form  a  settlement  for  negro  soldiers  who 
had  fought  on  behalf  of  Great  Britain  in  the  War  of 
Independence,  and  for  the  African  slaves  who  had  been 
liberated  after  the  legal  abolition  of  the  slave-trade  had 
been  enacted.  As  early  as  1792  Methodism  had  been 
introduced  into  this  district  by  negro  converts  who  came 
from  Nova  Scotia.  As  the  result  of  their  work  a  chapel 
to  hold  400  people  was  erected,  and  in  response  to  an 
appeal  which  was  sent  to  England  some  Methodist  preachers 
arrived  in  1796.  This  mission,  however,  proved  unsuc- 
cessful and  was  abandoned.  In  1811  a  preacher  named 
George  Warren,  accompanied  by  three  schoolmasters,  sailed 
for  Sierra  Leone  and,  despite  great  loss  of  life  on  the  part 
of  the  early  pioneers,  the  mission  was  at  length  firmly 
established. 

In  1804  the  CJf.S.  began  work  by  sending  out,  in 
the  first  instance,  some  German  missionaries,  amongst 
whom  the  names  of  Nylander  and  Jansen  are  worthy 
of  notice.  By  1846,  50,000  liberated  slaves  had  been 
landed  in  the  colony,  who  spoke,  as  it  was  stated,  117 
different  dialects.  As  a  result  of  the  multiplicity  of 
African  tongues  English  was  adopted  as  the  language 
of  the  colouy,  and  most  of  the  inhabitants  near  the  coast 
speak  to-day  no  other  language.  The  mortality  amongst 
the  early  missionaries  was  appalling.  In  twenty-five 
years  109  men  and  women  died.  In  1852  an  Anglican 
bishopric  was  established.     The  first  three  Bishops  (Vidal, 


288  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Weeks  and  Bowen)  died  at  their  posts  before  the  end  of 
ten  years. 

The  work  of  the  English  Methodists  has  been  subject  to 
great  fluctuations,  but  the  numbers  of  converts  have 
steadily  increased.  The  Girls'  High  School  in  Freetown, 
which  is  superintended  by  three  English  Methodist 
deaconesses,  has  recently  been  enlarged.  Both  the  Angli- 
can and  Methodist  missions  have  developed  into  what  are 
practically  independent  churches.  The  moral  character  of 
the  Christians  connected  with  all  the  missions  leaves  very 
much  to  be  desired ;  the  tendency  of  the  Christians  is  to 
imitate  the  dress  and  the  social  habits  of  Europeans,  whilst 
making  little  attempt  to  imitate  the  character  which  they 
have  acquired  as  a  result  of  long  centuries  of  Christian 
education.  Their  ancestors,  who  were  said  to  have  repre- 
sented 117  different  tribes,  were  a  "  confused  mass,  destitute 
of  the  slightest  feeling  of  community,  (who)  lived  in  a  state 
of  constant  conflict  among  themselves,  and  were  dull,  lazy 
and  in  the  last  degree  unchaste,  besides  being  in  bondage, 
without  exception,  to  heathenish  superstition."  ^  It  is  not, 
therefore,  to  be  wondered  at  that  the  development  of 
Christian  character  has  not  kept  pace  with  the  material 
developments  of  the  people. 

Until  within  the  last  few  years  no  eff*orts  have  been 
made  by  the  Christians  of  Sierra  Leone  to  evangelize  their 
heathen  neighbours,  but  there  is  now  reason  to  hope  that 
the  recent  efforts  which  have  been  made  to  organize  and 
support  the  Christian  missions  in  the  interior  of  the 
country  will  meet  with  success  and  will  react  beneficially 
upon  the  Christian  population  on  and  near  the  coast. 

Dr.  Eugene  Stock's  reference  to  the  state  of  the 
Church  in  Sierra  Leone  in  1 8  7  2  is  applicable  to  the  state  of 
the  Anglican  and  Methodist  missions  at  the  present  time : 

"  The    churches    were    filled,    the    Communions    well 

attended,   Sunday-schools    fairly    efficient,    the   collections 

large,  but  .  .  .  while  there  were  many  godly  and  praying 

people,  particularly  among  the  poorer  and  older  members 

^  Warneck's  Protestant  Missions,  p.  216. 


AFRICA   (LIBERIA)  289 

of  the  congregations,  the  younger  and  more  opulent  folk 
manifested  for  the  most  part  little  personal  religion.  The 
weaknesses  of  the  African  character,  too,  were  very  manifest : 
sensual  indulgence  and  vain  display  were  common,  and 
dislike  to  hard  work  crowded  the  markets  for  clerks  and 
shopmen,  while  handicrafts  and  agriculture  were  neglected. 
Together  with  an  almost  grotesque  aping  of  the  externals  of 
European  refinement  and  luxury,  there  was  a  growing  spirit 
of  rather  petulant  independence." 

The  Fourah  Bay  College,  which  is  carried  on  by  the 
•  C.M.S.,  is  a  higher  grade  school  or  college  at  which  a 
large  proportion  of  the  African  clergy  and  schoolmasters 
employed  throughout  West  Africa  have  been  trained. 

Other  missionary  societies  which  are  at  work  in  the 
colony  are  the  American  United  Brethren  (15  of  whose 
missionaries  were  massacred  by  the  Temn^  tribe  in  1898) 
and  the  International  Missionary  Alliance.  This  latter 
society  works  in  the  Sherbro  district,  to  the  south  of  the 
colony,  and  has  met  with  a  large  measure  of  success. 

The  B.C.  missionaries,  who  number  22,  belong  to 
the  Order  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  the  Sacred  Heart  of 
Mary.  The  Christian  population  numbers  about  60,000, 
of  whom  about  3250  are  African  Eoman  Catholics. 

Liberia. 

The  colony,  or  state,  of  Liberia  originated  with  the 
efforts  made  by  the  American  Colonization  Society  (formed 
in  1817)  to  transplant  free  American  negroes  from 
America  to  West  Africa.  The  total  number  of  negroes 
who  have  come  from  America  is  about  20,000,  all  of 
whom  were  nominally  Christian.  In  1847  Liberia  was 
declared  an  independent  state,  with  the  result  that  from  a 
political  and  social  standpoint  hardly  any  progress  has 
since  been  achieved.  Included  in  its  area  are  various 
tribes  (Kroo,  Bassa,  Vey,  etc.),  which  number  about 
2,000,000.  The  Liberians  have  not  attempted  to  evan- 
gelize their  heathen  fellow-countrymen,  but  some  good 
missionary  work  has  been  done  by  the  American  Preshy- 
19 


290  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

terians,  the  Episcopal  Methodists  and  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  of  America.  This  last  supports  work  in  the  Cape 
Palmas  district,  which  is  superintended  by  Bishop  Ferguson, 
who  is  himself  a  Liberian.  The  total  number  of  professing 
Christians  is  about  20,000. 

A  Lutheran  mission  has  attempted  to  open  some 
stations  in  the  interior. 

A  B.C.  mission  was  started  in  1903,  and  there  are 
70  Christians  and  7  priests  connected  with  it. 

Ivory  Coast. 

The  Ivory  Coast,  which  is  a  French  possession,  has  a 
population  of  about  2,000,000,  of  whom  about  200,000 
are  Mohammedans.  The  B.C.  mission  (1895),  which  is 
supported  by  the  Lyons  Society,  has  19  priests  and  2400 
Christians. 

Gold  Coast. 

The  first  missionary  to  the  Gold  Coast,  and  perhaps  the 
first  Englishman  to  go  as  a  missionary  to  any  part  of 
Africa,  was  the  Eev.  Thomas  Thompson  {h.  1707),  who  was 
Fellow  and  Dean  of  Christ's  College,  Cambridge,  and 
resigned  his  position  there  (1744)  in  order  to  undertake 
missionary  work  in  New  Jersey.  After  labouring  there 
for  five  years,  he  volunteered  to  the  S.P.G.  to  go  as  a 
missionary  to  West  Africa,  if  the  Society  would  support 
him  out  of  its  "  Negro  Conversion  Fund."  In  offering  to 
go  as  a  missionary,  he  urged  that  "  if  ever  a  church  of 
Christ  is  founded  among  the  negroes,  somebody  must  lay 
the  first  stone,  and  should  he  be  prevented  in  his  intention, 
God  only  knew  how  long  it  might  be  again  before  any 
other  person  would  take  the  same  resolution."  He  was 
appointed  as  Missionary  to  the  Gold  Coast  on  Febru- 
ary 15,  1751.  On  reaching  the  coast  he  began  at 
once  to  learn  "  the  native  language."  The  king  frequently 
attended  the  services  which  he  conducted,  but  continued 
"  firm  and  unshaken  in  his  superstition."     He  completed 


AFRICA  (gold  coast)  291 

a  vocabulary  of  above  1200  words  and  baptized  some 
adult  negroes  "as  well  as  others."  In  1756,  in  con- 
sequence of  a  breakdown  of  health,  he  returned  to 
England.  He  had  meanwhile  sent  home  three  negro 
boys  under  twelve  years  of  age  to  be  trained  at  the 
Society's  expense  to  become  missionaries  to  their  fellow- 
countrymen.  On  their  arrival  in  London  in  1754  they 
were  placed  under  the  charge  of  a  "  very  diligent  school- 
master," and  after  receiving  instruction  for  four  years,  two 
of  them,  Quaque  and  Cudjo,  were  baptized  (January  7, 
1759)  in  the  Church  of  St.  Mary,  IsHngton.  The  third 
boy  died  of  consumption  in  1758,  and  Cudjo  afterwards 
died  of  madness  in  Guy's  Hospital.  Philip  Quaque  was 
ordained  as  an  Anglican  clergyman,  and  in  1765  was 
appointed  by  the  S.P.G.  "missionary,  schoolmaster  and 
catechist  to  the  negroes  on  the  Gold  Coast." 

During  his  stay  in  England  he  had  to  a  large  extent 
forgotten  his  own  language  and  had,  at  least  for  some 
years,  to  instruct  his  fellow-countrymen  by  the  aid  of  an 
interpreter.  During  the  first  nine  years  after  his  return 
to  Africa  he  baptized  52  persons,  some  of  whom  were 
soldiers  or  mulattoes. 

After  his  return  to  England,  Thompson  pubhshed  (in 
1772)  a  pamphlet  entitled  "The  African  Trade  for  Negro 
Slaves  shown  to  be  consistent  with  the  principles  of 
humanity  and  with  the  laws  of  revealed  religion."  ^  He 
had  himself  seen  much  of  the  operations  of  the  slave-traders 
on  the  coast  of  Africa.  The  arguments  contained  in  his 
pamphlet  are  for  the  most  part  drawn  from  Aristotle  and 
his  plea  of  justification  from  the  Pentateuch. 

Quaque  continued  to  work  in  different  parts  of  the 
Gold  Coast,  both  as  a  missionary  and  as  a  chaplain  to  the 
factory  at  Cape  Coast  Castle,  till  his  death  at  the  age  of 
seventy-five  in  1816. 

The  S.P.G.  helped  to  support  two  chaplains  as  "  mission- 
aries to  the  natives,"  but  in  1824  their  connection  with  the 
Gold  Coast  was  interrupted.     In  1841  they  voted  salaries 

1  A  copy  of  this  pamphlet  exists  in  the  British  Museum. 


292  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

for  two  clergy  to  be  stationed  at  Cape  Coast  Castle,  but 
men  were  not  forthcoming.  In  1904  the  S.P.G.  resumed 
its  work  on  the  Gold  Coast  and  a  bishop  was  appointed,  first 
as  a  suffragan  to  the  Bishop  of  W.  Equatorial  Africa  and 
later  on  as  Bishop  of  the  diocese  of  Accra.  The  chief  centres 
of  work  are  at  Accra,  Cape  Coast,  Sekondi  and  Kumasi. 

Up  to  the  present  the  S.P.G.  missionaries  have  been 
able  to  do  little  more  than  minister  to  the  European  and 
African  Christians  who  belong  to  the  Anglican  Church,  but 
the  Society  hopes  to  take  its  share  in  the  evangelization  of 
the  large  population  which  has  not  yet  come  into  touch 
with  any  Christian  mission. 

The  greater  part  of  the  missionary  work  in  the  Gold 
Coast  is  carried  on  by  the  English  Wesleyans  in  the 
western  and  the  Basel  Mission  in  the  eastern  districts 
of  the  colony.  The  Wesleyans,  who  work  chiefly  amongst 
the  Fanti,  began  their  work  in  1835. 

The  climatic  difficulties,  with  which  all  missionary 
societies  have  had  to  contend  in  West  Africa,  may  be 
illustrated  by  the  sacrifice  of  life  which  accompanied  the 
start  of  the  Wesleyan  mission.  The  first  worker,  who 
landed  in  1835,  died  within  six  months.  His  two 
successors,  who  arrived  in  the  following  year,  died  within 
fourteen  months.  The  next  two  workers  died  within  a 
month  of  their  arrival.  At  the  present  time  the  mission 
has  15  European  and  27  African  ministers  and  63,000 
baptized  Christians. 

The  Basel  Mission^  which  started  in  1824,  works 
amongst  the  Ga,  Chi  and  Fanti  peoples.  One  of  its 
missionaries,  Christaller,  translated  portions  of  the  Bible 
into  the  Ga  and  Chi  languages.  The  mission,  which  began 
on  the  coast,  has  now  penetrated  into  the  interior,  and 
extends  from  Ashanti  to  the  river  Volta.  In  1857,  after 
thirty  years'  work,  their  converts  numbered  only  367.  In 
1867  these  had  increased  to  1500,  and  the  present 
number  of  adherents  is  about  25,000.  The  mission  has 
organized  and  developed  on  a  considerable  scale  industrial 
missions,  which  are  placed  under  the  charge  of  a  special 


AFRICA    (tOGOLAND,    DAHOMEY)  293 

missionary  trading  society.  Ifc  has  also  devoted  special 
attention  to  the  development  both  of  elementary  and 
secondary  schools. 

The  RC.  missions  (1879),  which  are  connected  with  the 
Lyons  Society  for  African  Missions,  support  2 1  missionaries 
at  8  mission  stations,  and  13  schools.  The  Christians 
connected  with  this  mission  number  10,800.  The  total 
number  in  the  colony  is  41,000. 

Togoland. 

The  North  German  {Bremen)  Mission  started  work 
among  the  Evhe  people,  who  number  about  2,000,000,  in 
1847,  but  owing  to  constant  loss  by  death  of  its  mission- 
aries and  the  small  permanent  staff  which  it  has  been  able 
to  maintain,  its  progress  has  been  slow.  After  twenty-five 
years'  work  its  church  only  numbered  93  members.  The 
employment  of  missionary  deaconesses  has  been  a  great 
help  in  the  more  recent  development  of  its  work.  In 
1913  the  mission  reported  1535  baptisms. 

The  Steyl  Fathers  of  the  RG.  Ghurch  began  work  in 
1894,  and  the  Christian  community  attached  to  their 
mission  numbers  about  15,000.  In  1912  they  reported 
2000  baptisms.  There  are  44  priests  attached  to  the 
mission. 

The  English  Wesleyans  have  a  station  at  Little  Pope, 
and  German  Methodists  have  also  started  a  mission. 

Dahomey. 

Dahomey,  a  French  colony,  contains  a  population  of 
about  1,000,000,  of  whom  about  700,000  are  pagans  and 
300,000  Moslems.  The  R.G.  mission  (1882)  is  connected 
with  the  Lyons  Missionary  Society.  There  are  about 
11,500  converts  and  34  priests  connected  with  the 
missions.  The  Bishop  in  Dahomey  reports  a  great  opening 
for  evangelistic  work. 

The  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary  Society  has  a  station 
at  Porto  Novo  on  the  coast. 


294  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Yorubaland. 

A  number  of  slaves,  who  had  been  set  free  and 
had  become  Christians  in  Sierra  Leone,  began,  in  1840,  to 
return  to  the  Yoruba  country,  from  which  they  had  been 
taken  by  Portuguese  slave-raiders.  In  response  to  an 
appeal  from  these  Christians  the  Rev.  H.  Townsend,  the 
Rev.  C.  A.  Gollmer  and  the  Rev.  Samuel  Crowther,  who 
were  sent  by  the  G.M.S.,  started  work  in  Badagry  and 
Abeokuta  in  1846,  and  in  1852  work  was  begun  at  Lagos 
and  Ibadan,  at  the  latter  place  by  the  Rev.  D.  Hinderer. 
Within  eighteen  months  of  the  starting  of  work  at 
Abeokuta  six  converts  were  baptized,  one  of  whom  was 
the  mother  of  Samuel  Crowther,  whom  he  had  accidentally 
met  in  the  street  of  Abeokuta.  The  mission  soon  prospered 
and  extended,  and  by  1860  the  number  of  Christians  in 
the  Yoruba  mission,  including  the  immigrants  from  Sierra 
Leone,  numbered  2000.  The  extension  of  the  work  was 
interrupted  by  the  invasions  of  the  warlike  people  of 
Dahomey,  and  by  the  state  of  internal  warfare,  which 
continued  to  distract  the  country  and  to  endanger  the 
lives  of  the  missionaries.  Doherty,  an  African  catechist, 
was  captured  by  the  king  of  Dahomey,  who  ordered  him 
to  read  to  him  the  Christian  Scriptures.  The  king  eventu- 
ally ordered  him  to  be  killed,  with  a  portion  of  Scripture 
in  one  hand  and  a  lamp  in  the  other  hand,  in  order  that 
he  might  be  lighted  into  the  spirit  world  and  might  read 
the  Scriptures  to  the  last  king.  The  executioner  executed 
another  man  by  mistake  and  Doherty  eventually  resumed 
his  work  as  a  catechist. 

A  state  of  war  existed  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Abeokuta  for  five  years,  1860-65,  during  which  Mr. 
Hinderer  and  his  wife  were  detained  as  prisoners  in 
Ibadan.  Towards  the  end  of  1867  the  Egba  chiefs 
suddenly  expelled  all  European  missionaries  from  Abeokuta, 
and  for  the  next  thirteen  years  the  Christians  there  were 
left  in  charge  of  African  pastors. 

In   1871,  Bishop  Cheetham  of  Sierra  Leone  ordained 


AFRICA    (YORUBALANd)  295 

four  Yorubas  as  clergy,  and  in  1876  he  ordained  three 
more.  One  of  the  latter  was  Phillips,  who  afterwards 
became  assistant  bishop. 

Soon  after  the  English  Government  had  taken  posses- 
sion of  Lagos  (1861)  it  became  the  centre  of  the  C.M.S. 
Yoruba  Mission ;  and  the  interior  was  left  without  a  resident 
European  missionary,  from  1865  to  1883,  when  the 
Eev.  J.  B.  Wood  became  the  superintending  missionary. 
In  1888  the  C.M.S.  obtained  the  approval  of  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  to  the  appointment  of  an  African  as 
Bishop  of  the  Yoruba  country,  but  owing  to  the  opposition 
of  the  African  Christians  the  proposal  was  abandoned. 

In  1864  the  Eev.  Samuel  Crowther  was  appointed  as 
Bishop  of  the  Niger  (see  p.  297),  and  on  his  death  in  1891 
Bishop  Hill  succeeded  him  in  1893  with  the  title  of 
"Bishop  in  West  Equatorial  Africa,"  Lagos,  which  had 
formerly  been  supervised  by  the  Bishop  of  Sierra  Leone, 
being  now  incorporated  in  the  same  diocese  as  the  Niger. 
At  the  same  time  two  Africans,  Eev.  C.  Phillips  and  Eev.  I. 
Oluwole,  were  consecrated  as  assistant  bishops  for  the 
Yoruba  country.  On  the  death  of  Bishop  Hill,  in  the 
following  January,  Bishop  Tugwell  succeeded  him.  Bishop 
Phillips  died  in  1906.  In  1900  another  African,  Eev. 
James  Johnson,  was  consecrated  as  an  assistant  bishop. 
The  Anglican  mission  has  40,000  adherents  and  15,000 
school  children.  On  the  coast,  and  specially  at  Lagos, 
which  is  the  centre  of  organization  for  the  various  missions, 
a  large  proportion  of  the  Christians  speak  English  and 
tend  to  imitate  English  customs. 

Many  of  the  churches  in  Lagos  are  served  by  African 
clergy  or  pastors.  The  Anglican  church  at  Breadfruit, 
which  has  a  congregation  of  about  1400,  and  raises  nearly 
£1000  a  year  for  religious  objects,  is  built  on  the  site  of 
the  old  baracoon,  the  building  in  which  slaves  waiting  to 
be  shipped  were  formerly  confined.  The  Anglican  churches 
in  Lagos  and  district  are  no  longer  connected  with  any 
missionary  society,  but  are  beginning  to  support  missionary 
work  on  their  own  account. 


296  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

In  the  "  Lagos  District,"  which  includes  tho  Yoruba 
country,  the  English  Wesleyans  have  11  European  and  21 
African  ministers  and  9000  baptized  Christians.  Missions 
are  also  carried  on  by  the  Southern  Baptist  and  National 
Ba;ptist  Conventions,  U.S.A. 

Belonging  to  the  B.C.  missions,  which  are  supported 
by  the  Lyons  Society,  there  are  27  priests,  24  schools  and 
16  orphanages. 

The  Niger  Mission. 

The  CM.S.  Niger  Mission  has  a  special  interest  for  all 
students  of  Missions.  It  embodied  a  serious  attempt, 
which  was  persevered  in  for  nearly  half  a  century,  to 
establish  a  branch  of  the  Christian  Church  in  tropical 
Africa  through  the  instrumentality  of  Africans  and  with  a 
minimum  of  European  supervision.  The  attempt  was  the 
outcome  of  the  realization  that  the  climate  of  the  river 
Niger  and  surrounding  districts  was  so  unhealthy  that 
white  men  could  not  hope  to  work  there  for  more  than  a 
few  months  at  a  time.  When  the  first  British  expedition, 
which  was  accompanied  by  Dr.  Schon  and  Samuel 
Crowther,  went  up  the  Niger  in  1841,  42  white  men  out 
of  a  total  of  150  died  within  two  months.  After  a 
second  and  more  successful  expedition  had  been  made  in 
1857,  Samuel  Crowther,  who  had  been  originally  a  slave 
and  had  been  educated  at  Fourah  Bay  and  ordained  in 
London  in  1843,  was  commissioned  by  the  CM.S.  to 
open  a  Niger  Mission  to  be  staffed  by  Africans  from  Sierra 
Leone.  In  1859  the  CM.S.  sent  out  five  Europeans  to 
join  the  staff  of  the  mission,  but  none  of  them  succeeded 
in  reaching  Onitsha,  which  was  the  first  mission  station  to 
be  occupied.  Until  the  cause  of  malarial  fever  was  dis- 
covered to  be  the  bite  of  the  Anopheles  mosquito,  the  river 
Niger  deservedly  possessed  the  reputation  of  having  the 
most  unhealthy  climate  that  the  world  contained.  When 
the  writer  of  this  volume  was  on  the  Niger  in  1894  the 
average  length  of  a  white  man's  life  was  reckoned  to  be 
two  years.      Since  the  discovery  of  the  cause  of  malaria  the 


AFRICA    (NIGERIA)  297 

conditions    have     completely     changed.       Wlien    it    was 
reahzed  that  white  men  could  not  live  for  any  length  of 
time  on    the  Niger,  the  C.M.S.   decided  to  apply  to  the 
Archbishop    of     Canterbury    to     consecrate    Crowther    as 
Bishop,  and  to  place  the  whole  of  the  mission  under  his 
charge.     Amid  scenes  of  great  enthusiasm  he  was  conse- 
crated in  Canterbury  Cathedral  in  1864,  and  remained  as 
Bishop  of  the  Niger  till  his  death  in    1891.     The  only 
African  who  had  been  consecrated  as  a  bishop  before  the 
time  of  Crowther  was  the  Bishop  of  the  Congo  (see  p.  302). 
The  experiment  of  placing  an  African  bishop  to  super- 
vise a  mission  where,  as  experience  seemed  to  have  shown, 
European  missionaries  could  not  work,  was  fully  justified 
by  the  circumstances  of  that  time,  but  it  must  regretfully 
be  admitted    that  it  proved  an    almost  complete    failure. 
Bishop  Crowther  was  a  humble  and  saintly  man,  but  he 
lacked    the    qualities  which  were    essential    for    the    due 
performance  of    his  duties    as  a  bishop.     When,  as    alas 
frequently  happened,  complaints  were  made  to  him  that 
one  of    his  missionaries  had    committed  a    serious    moral 
offence,  he  was  wont  to  reply,  "  I  never  hear  evil  spoken 
against  my  missionaries."     The  result  was  that  when  he 
died,    after    an    episcopate    of    twenty-seven    years,    little 
progress    had     been    made,    and    the    reputation    of    the 
Christians  at  some  of  the  mission  stations  was  such  that 
the  reconstruction  of  the  mission  proved  a  more  difficult 
task  than  would  have  been  the  founding  of  a  completely 
new  mission. 

During  his  long  episcopate  Bishop  Crowther  never 
learnt  any  language  which  could  be  understood  on  the 
Niger,  and  till  his  death  he  was  dependent  on  the  help 
of  interpreters,  who  were  in  many  cases  quite  incompetent. 
He  habitually  spoke  EngHsh,  but  could  also  speak  Yoruba, 
which  he  had  learned  as  a  boy,  and  which  was  available 
in  parts  of  the  Lagos  district. 

Bishop  Tugwell  in  the  course  of  a  speech  in  which  he 
alluded  to  the  jubilee  of  Bishop  Crowther's  consecration, 
referred  thus  to  the  failure  of  Bishop  Crowther  to  infuse  his 


298  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

own  spirit  into  his  fellow-workers  :  "  He  suffered  greatly  by 
the  hands  of  others.  He  suffered  greatly  because  some  men 
who  should  have  been  true  .  .  .  failed,  and  failed  griev- 
ously. Under  temptations  which  were  great,  cut  off  from 
the  companionship  of  their  fellow-Christians,  some  became 
drunken  and  immoral,  others  greedy  of  gain  engaged  in 
trade.  In  1885  there  was  a  grievous  scandal  at  Onitsha 
.  .  .  the  blow  fell  mainly  upon  Bishop  Crowther.  The 
remainder  of  his  life  was  spent  under  a  cloud,  and  he 
carried  his  burden  to  the  grave."  ^ 

On  the  death  of  Bishop  Crowther  in  1891  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  sent  out  the  Eev.  J.  S.  Hill  to  report 
to  him  on  the  condition  of  the  mission.  Mr.  Hill  was 
subsequently  consecrated  as  Bishop,  but  died  at  Lagos  on 
his  return  journey  in  1894. 

Since  1894  much  good  work  has  been  done  and 
foundations  have  been  laid  on  which  there  is  every  reason 
to  believe  that  a  Christian  Church,  worthy  of  the  name, 
may  eventually  be  built  up.  The  two  African  bishops 
have  given  valuable  assistance  to  Bishop  Tugwell  in  the 
supervision  of  his  widely  extended  diocese.  In  this  diocese, 
which  includes  the  Niger  and  Yoruba  Missions,  there  are 
now  (1915)  89  clergy,  of  whom  65  are  Africans.  Of 
these  last  51  are  supported  by  the  local  Church.  Of  the 
450  African  lay  agents  the  local  Church  supports  225. 
There  are  about  70,000  Christian  adherents  connected 
with  the  Anglican  Church  in  the  diocese. 

In  the  lower  reaches  of  the  Niger  missionary  work  is 
carried  on  by  the  Niger  Delta  Pastorate,  which  is  now 
practically  independent  of  the  C.M.S.  Higher  up  the 
river,  in  Southern  Nigeria,  the  chief  centres  of  work  are 
at  Onitsha,  Obusi  and  Asaba.  There  are  9  European 
clergy  in  this  part  of  the  mission  and  2  European  doctors. 

In  1890  the  Eev.  J.  Alfred  Eobinson  and  Mr.  G. 
Wilmot  Brooke,  accompanied  by  several  others,  attempted 
to  start  mission  work  amongst  the  Hausas  in  Northern 
Nigeria.      Both  the  leaders  of  this  mission  died,  however, 

*  Address  to  his  diocesan  synod  at  Lagos,  May  1914. 


AFRICA    (NIGERIA)  299 

before  any  station  in  the  Hausa  country  had  been  opened. 
Dr.  Walter  Miller,  who  went  out  to  Nigeria  in  1898,  has 
carried  on  medical  and  other  missionary  work  at  Zaria 
under  circumstances  of  special  difficulty,  and,  besides 
gathering  round  him  a  number  of  converts  from  Islam, 
he  has  seen  the  building  of  a  Christian  village  inhabited 
by  ex-Moslem  Christians  or  Christian  inquirers.  This 
mission  has  greater  promise  than  perhaps  any  other  in 
West  Africa,  as  the  Hausas,  whose  language  is  the  lingua 
franca  of  the  Western  Sudan,  and  who  travel  as  traders 
over  the  whole  of  North  Africa,  are  possessed  of  more 
character  than  those  belonging  to  any  other  race  in  West 
Africa.  The  majority  of  them  are  nominal  Mohammedans, 
but  there  are  signs  that  many  are  prepared  to  listen  to 
Christian  teaching.  The  conversion  to  the  Christian  faith 
of  any  large  number  of  the  Hausas  would  be  the  prelude 
to  the  conversion  of  a  large  part  of  Africa  north  of  the 
equator. 

By  far  the  greater  part  of  the  missionary  work  on  the 
Niger  is  in  the  hands  of  the  C.M.S.,  which,  in  addition  to 
the  stations  already  referred  to,  has  work  amongst  the 
pagans  in  the  Bauchi  district  of  Northern  Nigeria. 

The  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland  has  a  mission  at 
Old  Calabar  (1846).  The  success  achieved  by  this  mission 
is  to  be  attributed  to  the  fact  that  its  work  has  been 
more  carefully  supervised  by  European  missionaries  than 
perhaps  any  other  mission  in  West  Africa.  The  Sudan 
United  Mission,  which  works  on  undenominational  lines, 
and  was  started  in  1904,  has  several  stations  amongst  the 
pagan  tribes  on  the  river  Benu^.  Its  aim  is  eventually  to 
connect  with  other  missions  in  the  Nile  basin.  The  B.C. 
missionaries  belong  to  the  Orders  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  the 
Sacred  Heart  of  Mary.  In  the  Vicariate  of  Benin  (1860) 
there  are  8500  Christians  and  28  priests;  in  the  apostolic 
prefecture  of  Western  Nigeria  (1884)  there  are  17  priests 
and  2800  Christians;  in  that  of  Eastern  Nigeria  (1911) 
there  are  5  priests;  and  in  that  of  Lower  Nigeria  (1889) 
there  are  4789  Christians  and  18  priests. 


300  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  Cameroons. 

In  1845,  Saker,  a  representative  of  the  English  Baptists, 
coming  from  Fernando  Po,  began  missionary  work,  but  the 
visible  progress  attained  was  comparatively  small.  In 
1884,  when  the  German  Government  ,  occupied  this 
territory,  the  Baptists  handed  over  their  work  to  the 
Basel  Mission.  Owing  to  difficulties  which  arose  between 
the  Africans  and  the  European  missionaries,  several  con- 
gregations declared  themselves  independent,  while  others 
are  now  superintended  by  German  Baptist  missionaries. 
The  Basel  Mission  has  since  made  good  progress,  and  has 
established  centres  both  amongst  the  Dualla-speaking 
peoples  and  in  other  parts  of  the  territory.  In  1913  the 
Basel  Mission  reported  1500  baptisms.  The  Gossner 
Mission  has  started  work  in  the  eastern  districts. 

In  the  southern  part  of  the  Cameroons,  in  Batanga 
Land,  the  American  Preshyterians,  who  began  work  in 
1875,  have  a  number  of  stations.  They  have  also 
stations  in  French  territory  on  the  Gaboon  Eiver  and 
Corisco  Island. 

The  B.C.  mission,  which  began  work  in  1890,  has  been 
making  rapid  progress  within  recent  years.  During  1913 
it  reported  6000  baptisms,  bringing  the  total  number  of 
baptized  Christians  up  to  20,000.  There  are  31  priests 
connected  with  the  mission. 

Rio  Muni. 

Eio  Muni,  a  Spanish  possession,  which  lies  to  the 
south  of  the  Cameroons,  has  a  population  of  about  40,000. 
Off  the  coast  lie  the  Spanish  islands  of  Fernando  Po,  Corisco, 
and  Anno  Bon,  containing  a  population  of  about  34,000. 
The  B.C.  missions,  which  are  carried  on  by  the  Spanish 
Congregation  of  the  Sacred  Heart  of  Mary,  report  6500 
converts.  Work  is  carried  on  at  fourteen  stations  by 
24  priests.  The  American  Bresbyterian  Church  has  five 
stations    and     600    Christians    on    the    mainland.       The 


AFRICA   (cONGO)  301 

Primitive  Methodists  have  four  stations  and  100  Christians 
in  Fernando  Po. 

The  Congo. 

In  1491  a  band  of  Portuguese  missionaries,  who 
had  come  in  response  to  a  request  sent  by  the  king  of 
the  Congo,^  landed  near  the  mouth  of  that  river. 
Shortly  after  their  arrival  the  king  of  the  Congo  and 
many  of  his  principal  chiefs  were  baptized  with  great 
state  and  ceremonial  and  thousands  of  persons  followed 
their  example.  To  the  capital  of  the  Congo  was  given 
the  new  name  of  San  Salvador.  The  second  Christian 
king  commanded  all  his  subjects  to  abandon  idolatry  and 
receive  baptism  on  pain  of  being  burnt  alive,  and  images 
of  the  saints  were  offered  to  them  to  replace  their  former 
idols.  The  European  missionaries  included  representatives 
of  the  Dominicans,  Franciscans,  Augustinians  and,  later  on, 
of  the  Jesuits.  Dissensions  occurred  amongst  the  repre- 
sentatives of  these  Orders,  and  the  king  sent  back  some 
of  the  priests  as  prisoners  to  Portugal.  In  course  of 
time  the  kingdom  of  Congo  was  declared  "  wholly  Catholic." 
A  large  number  of  the  slaves  shipped  abroad  from  West 
Africa  were  taken  from  the  Congo  districts,  and  a  marble 
chair  formerly  existed  on  the  pier  at  St.  Paul  de  Loanda 
from  which  the  bishops  used  to  give  their  blessing  to 
the  slave-ships  which  were  preparing  to  sail  for  the 
Portuguese  possessions  in  Brazil  or  the  West  Indies. 

Some  of  the  Jesuit  missionaries  preached  earnestly 
against  polygamy  and  unchastity,  which  the  African  clergy 
permitted,  but  they  were  not  supported  by  the  king  or 
the  court.  After  several  alternations  of  revival  and 
retrogression  the  profession  of  Christianity  began  to 
decrease.  In  1640  the  Capuchin  friars  arrived.  At 
first  they  preached  against  the  practice  of  polygamy,  but 

1  For  a  detailed  account  of  the  early  Christian  missions  to  the  Congo  see 
A  Report  of  the  Kingdom  of  the  Congo,  drawn  out  of  the  writings  and 
discourses  of  the  Portuguese  Duarte  Lopez,  by  Filippo  Pigafetta,  1591. 
Translated  by  M.  Hutchinson. 


302  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

they  eventually  agreed  to  its  retention.  In  1698  the 
missionary  Zucchelli  wrote,  concerning  the  people  amongst 
whom  he  was  working :  "  Here  is  neither  knowledge  nor 
conscience,  neither  Word  of  God  nor  faith,  neither  state 
nor  family,  .  .  .  neither  discipline  nor  shame,  .  .  .  neither 
fear  of  God  nor  zeal  for  the  welfare  of  souls.  .  .  .  You 
can  say  nothing  of  these  people  except  that  they  are  in 
fact  nothing  else  than  baptized  heathen,  who  have  nothing 
of  Christianity  about  them  but  the  bare  name,  without 
any  works."  A  negro,  who  was  a  descendant  of  the 
royal  house,  after  being  educated  in  Portugal  and  at  Eome, 
was  appointed  Bishop  of  San  Salvador,  but  died  before 
reaching  his  diocese. 

Several  subsequent  attempts  were  made  by  the 
Capuchins  and  Benedictines  to  raise  the  moral  and 
religious  tone  of  the  people,  but  without  success. 
Captain  Tuckey,  who  was  sent  by  the  English  Government 
in  1816  to  explore  the  Congo,  could  find  no  trace  of 
Christianity  except  crucifixes  and  relics,  which  were  not 
distinguished  by  the  people  from  their  amulets  and  fetiches. 

It  would  seem  that  Christianity  had  at  no  time  exerted 
more  than  a  superficial  influence  upon  the  inhabitants, 
and  had  from  the  first  failed  to  effect  any  real  change 
in  the  characters  of  those  who  adopted  its  profession. 
It  is,  indeed,  hard  to  see  how  a  mission  which  not  only 
condoned  but  engaged  in  slave-raiding,  and  which  permitted 
polygamy  in  its  most  repulsive  forms,  could  have  obtained 
better  or  more  permanent  results  than  those  which  were 
attained. 

The  exploration  of  the  Congo  by  Stanley  (1876-77), 
which  was  followed  by  the  establishment,  under  Belgian 
auspices,  of  the  Congo  Free  State,  prepared  the  way  for 
the  re-establishment  of  Christian  missions.  Eepresentafcives 
of  the  English  Baptists  from  the  Cameroons  began  work 
in  1879,  and  in  the  course  of  a  few  years  established 
nine  stations  extending  up  almost  to  the  Stanley  Falls. 
The  eagerness  of  the  missionaries,  amongst  whom  Bentley 
deserves  special  notice,  to  cover  too  much  ground  led  to 


AFRICA    (cONGO)  303 

the  establishment  of  weak  centres  at  great  distances  from 
one  another,  and  the  progress  attained  has  been  less  than 
might  have  been  expected  in  view  of  the  number  of 
agents  who  have  been  employed.  The  English  Baptists 
have  now  opened  two  stations,  Mabondo  and  Wayika,  on 
the  Lualaba  Kiver,  which  are  within  300  miles  of  Uganda. 

A  little  later  a  mission,  entitled  the  Congo  Inland 
Mission,  was  organized  by  Grattan  Guinness,  the  founder 
of  the  East  London  Institute.  His  work  was  characterized 
by  undue  haste,  and  several  stations  had  to  be  abandoned 
after  having  been  opened.  Partly  in  consequence  of  the 
lack  of  due  care  in  the  selection  of  missionaries  at  home, 
and  partly  in  consequence  of  unskilful  organization  abroad, 
a  large  proportion  of  the  missionaries,  many  of  whom 
were  women,  died  after  a  very  brief  period  of  service. 
The  mission  was  eventually  taken  over  by  the  American 
Baptist  Missionary  Union. 

In  1886,  Grattan  Guinness  founded  another  mission 
amongst  the  Balolo  tribe,  which  lives  on  the  basin  of  the 
Lulongo,  a  tributary  on  the  left  of  the  Congo  south  of 
its  great  bend. 

In  1886,  Arnot,  an  independent  missionary,  a  member 
of  the  Plymouth  Brethren,  started  a  new  mission  in  Garen- 
ganze  or  Katanga,  in  the  far  east  of  the  Congo  Free  State. 
This  mission,  which  has  now  a  staff  of  1 5  missionaries,  has 
established  fifteen  stations  between  Bihe  and  Lake  Mweru. 

The  American  Methodist  Einscopal  Church  {South) 
started  a  mission  among  the  Batetela,  north  of  the  Lobefu 
River,  in  November  1913,  under  the  superintendence  of 
Bishop  Lambuth.  The  recently  formed  Soci4t6  Beige  de 
Missions  Protestantes  au  Congo  is  starting  work  at  Chofa, 
on  the  Lomami. 

The  American  Presbyterian  Church  (South),  which  has 
a  mission  on  the  Kasai  and  Lulua  Eivers,  was  strengthened 
in  1914  by  the  addition  of  14  new  missionaries,  who 
are  to  be  supported  by  funds  provided  as  a  result  of  the 
Laymen's  Missionary  Movement. 

Attempts   are  being  made  from  three  different  bases 


304  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

to  evangelize  the  Niam-Niam  or  Azandi  people,  who  live 
at  the  meeting-point  of  the  Belgian  Congo,  the  French 
Congo  and  the  Anglo-Egyptian  Sudan.  The  C.M.S.  are 
advancing  from  Malek  on  the  river  Nile,  the  Africa 
Inland  Mission  is  advancing  from  Mahagi  on  the  western 
shore  of  the  Albert  Nyanza,  and  a  Eoman  Catholic  mission, 
which  started  from  Wau  in  the  Bahr-el-Ghazal,  has  opened 
stations  at  Mupoi  among  the  Niam-Niam  and  at  Palaro 
and  Gondokoro. 

Many  who  have  had  little  personal  experience  of 
missionary  work  and  profess  to  base  their  theory  of 
missionary  methods  simply  on  the  teaching  of  the  New 
Testament,  have  from  time  to  time  suggested  that  a 
mission  established  amongst  primitive  or  backward  races 
ought  to  be  self-supporting  from  the  outset.  The  Congo 
has  been  the  scene  of  an  experiment  based  upon  this 
theory  on  a  large  and  disastrous  scale. 

The  Eev.  William  Taylor  was  appointed  by  the 
American  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  1884  as  "Bishop 
of  all  Africa."  He  created  a  great  impression  in  America, 
by  holding  a  series  of  meetings  in  which  he  declared  that 
Africa  could  be  converted  to  Christianity  by  the  establish- 
ment of  a  chain  of  self-supporting  missions,  the  members  of 
which  would  earn  their  living  as  carpenters,  agriculturists 
and  traders.  Within  twelve  years  140  men  and  women 
were  sent  out  to  West  Africa,  and  having  been  deposited 
at  stations  selected  by  Bishop  Taylor,  were  left  to  earn 
their  own  living  and  preach  the  gospel.  At  the  end  of 
ten  years  the  vast  majority  of  these  had  died,  and  only 
17  remained  in  the  Congo  district  and  in  Liberia. 
A  few  near  Stanley  Pool  had  endeavoured  to  save  them- 
selves from  starvation  by  shooting  hippopotami  and  sell- 
ing their  flesh  to  the  natives.  Nothing  had  been  accom- 
plished from  a  missionary  standpoint,  and  the  missionaries 
had  apparently  failed  to  learn  any  African  language. 

It  is  difficult  to  insist  too  strongly  upon  the  fact  that 
there  is  to-day  little  place  in  the  mission  field  for  solitary 
missionaries    independent  of   any  missionary  organization. 


AFRICA    (cONGo)  305 

Missionaries  who  have  no  experience  to  guide  them,  and 
who  have  no  successors,  can  do  little  good  and  may  do 
much  harm.  The  writer  came  across  one  such  in  a  lonely 
spot  in  Central  Africa  hundreds  of  miles  from  the  nearest 
mission  station.  He  had  become  impressed,  whilst  living 
in  America,  that  it  was  his  duty  to  attempt  the  conversion 
of  the  people  of  West  Central  Africa.  Without  making 
an  effort  to  learn  any  language,  or  to  gain  a  knowledge 
of  the  religion  or  customs  of  the  people  whom  he  hoped  to 
influence,  he  and  one  companion  sailed  for  West  Africa. 
When  the  writer  of  this  book  came  across  him  he  was 
dying  of  dysentery,  and  his  companion,  whom  he  had  left 
behind  at  a  distant  town,  subsequently  died  also,  before 
either  of  them  had  got  into  touch  with  the  people  whom 
they  hoped  to  evangelize. 

Hundreds  of  similar  cases  have  occurred,  and  it  cannot 
be  maintained  that  these  missionaries  have  by  their  lives, 
or  even  by  their  deaths,  helped  forward  the  cause  which 
they  had  at  heart. 

Missionary  work  needs  the  very  best  men  and  women 
who  can  be  found,  and  if  there  is  any  place  for  untrained 
missionaries  it  can  only  be  at  a  mission  station,  where  the 
untrained  recruit  can  obtain  the  constant  help  and 
guidance  of  others. 

The  B.C.  missions  are  carried  on  by  the  Algerian 
M.  Society,  the  Belgian  F.M.  Society  and  the  Order  of 
the  Sacred  Heart  of  Jesus  (Rome).  There  are  about 
100  missionaries  and  17,000  converts. 

The  population  of  the  Congo  Free  State  is  about 
30,000,000,  of  whom  about  600,000  are  Moslems. 

French  Congo. 

In  the  French  Congo  the  mission  work  of  the 
American  Presbyterians  in  Gaboon  was  handed  over  to 
the  Paris  Society  on  the  establishment  of  a  French 
Protectorate.  There  are  four  missions  on  the  river  Ogowe 
extending  to  a  distance  of  250  miles  from  the  coast. 


306  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  Swedish  Missionary  Society  has  three  stations  in 
the  French  Congo,  one  of  which  is  at  Brazzaville. 

A  new  and  independent  mission  was  begun  in  1914  at 
Lambarene  by  Dr.  Albert  Schweitzer,  who  is  widely  known 
in  Germany  and  in  England  both  as  a  musician  and  as  a 
learned  theologian ;  he  is  the  author  of  The  Quest  of  the 
Historical  Jesus. 

The  B.C.  missions,  which  are  connected  with  the 
Algerian  Missionary  Society,  support  46  missionaries  and 
26  schools.  The  total  number  of  Christians  connected 
with  the  K.C.  missions  is  about  5000. 


Angola. 

In  the  Portuguese  colony  of  Angola,  which  contains 
484,800  square  miles  and  a  population  of  about  4,200,000, 
there  are  815,000  E.C.  Christians,  including  Europeans. 

The  B.C.  missions  are  in  the  diocese  of  St.  Paul  de 
Loanda.  The  Congregation  of  the  Sacred  Heart  have  their 
principal  station  at  Huilla,  where  there  is  a  large  industrial 
institution  in  which  80  Africans  are  taught  skilled  trades, 
e.g.  tanning,  boot-making,  tailoring  and  wagon-making. 
The  missionaries  are  specially  interested  in  botany  and 
botanical  researches.  Of  the  36  priests  in  charge  of  the 
missions  2  are  Africans. 

The  English  Baptists  are  represented  at  San  Salvador. 
A  mission  begun  by  Bishop  Taylor  (to  whom  we  have 
already  referred)  in  Loanda  is  now  under  the  charge  of 
the  American  Methodist  Episcopalians,  and  industrial  and 
evangelistic  work  is  being  carried  on  in  the  river  region  of 
the  Kuansa.  In  1881  the  American  Board  (A.B.C.FJI.) 
began  work  in  the  kingdom  of  Bih^,  where  slow  but 
satisfactory  progress  has  been  accomplished. 

German  South- West  Africa. 

German  South- West  Africa,  which,  previous  to  the  war, 
embraced  an  area  of  322,000  square  miles,  had  a  population 


AFRICA    (south)  307 

of  about  200,000,  of  whom  5000  are  Europeans.  The 
Herero  and  Ovambo  tribes  in  the  north  are  Bantus,  while 
the  Namaquas  in  the  south  are  of  Hottentot  descent.  The 
pagans  number  about  170,000  and  the  Christians  30,000. 
Of  the  latter  12,000  are  Eoman  Catholics  and  18,000 
Protestants.  Connected  with  the  B.G,  missions,  which 
form  the  ecclesiastical  prefecture  of  Cinebabasia,  there 
are  47  priests,  30  schools  and  10,600  adherents.  The 
Protestant  missions  are  chiefly  conducted  by  the  Rhenish 
and  the  Finnish  Missionary  Societies.  These  report  72 
missionaries,  58  stations  or  out-stations  and  12,700  pro- 
fessed Christians. 


South  Africa.^ 

If  by  South  Africa  be  meant  Africa  south  of  the 
river  Zambesi,  the  honour  of  sending  to  it  the  first 
Christian  missionary  and  the  first  Christian  martyr  belongs 
to  the  Portuguese.  In  1560,  twenty  years  after  the 
formation  of  the  Society  of  Jesus,  Father  Gonzalo  da  Silveira 
landed  at  Sofala,  accompanied  by  two  other  members  of 
this  Order.  His  first  visit  was  to  a  chief  named  Gamba, 
not  far  from  Inhambane.  After  a  stay  of  seven  weeks 
with  this  heathen  chief  he  wrote :  "  Thanks  be  to  God  and 
to  the  Holy  Virgin,  the  queen  as  well  as  the  king's  sons 
and  daughters,  his  household,  court  and  relations — in  a 
word,  all  the  subjects  of  that  kingdom — are  now  Chris- 
tians." Leaving  this  chief  and  his  Christian  subjects. 
Father  Silveira  made  his  way  up  the  Zambesi  to  the 
Portuguese  settlement  of  Sena.  During  the  two  months 
which  he  spent  here  he  baptized  500  slaves  and  servants 
of  the  Europeans.  He  then  proceeded  to  visit  the  reigning 
Monomotapa  (chief),  whose  country  was  probably  situated 
near  the  modern  Mount  Darwin,  about   150  miles  from 

1 1  am  indebted  for  a  large  amount  of  help  in  compiling  this  sketch  of 
missionary  work  in  South  Africa  to  Christian  Missims  in  South  Africa,  by 
J.  Du  Plessis.  His  book  is  by  far  the  best  which  has  been  published 
dealing  with  his  subject. 


308  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Tete  on  the  Zambesi.  He  was  at  first  well  received,  and 
within  a  month  he  baptized  the  chief  and  300  of  his 
councillors  and  attendants.  He  baptized  also  a  number 
of  others,  his  custom  being  to  present  calico  and  beads 
to  all  who  allowed  themselves  to  be  baptized.  Soon, 
however,  the  chief  became  jealous  of  his  influence,  and 
on  March  16,  1561,  he  was  murdered  by  the  chiefs 
orders. 

After  a  short  time,  and  in  obedience  to  orders  received 
from  Goa,  his  companions  left  the  country.  In  1577  the 
Dominicans  began  work  in  East  Africa,  and  eventually 
established  several  missions  on  the  river  Zambesi,  where 
they  were  followed  by  further  representatives  of  the  Jesuits. 
The  most  remarkable  among  the  Dominican  missionaries 
was  Friar  Nicolau  do  Eosario,  who  began  as  a  missionary 
in  India  and  who  suffered  death  as  a  martyr  in  1592.  A 
son  of  the  succeeding  Monomotapa  was  sent  to  India  and 
became  a  Dominican  friar.  Despite  the  fact  that  two 
Monomotapas  in  succession  embraced  Christianity,  neither 
the  Dominican  nor  the  Jesuit  mission  made  any  real 
progress,  and  complaints,  which  were  apparently  not 
unfounded,  were  made  to  the  Portuguese  Government  con- 
cerning the  character  of  the  missionaries  themselves.  At 
length,  in  1760,  the  Portuguese  Government  expelled  the 
Jesuits  from  South-East  Africa,  and  in  1 7  7  5  the  Dominicans 
also  were  ordered  to  leave.  Dr.  Theal,  the  chief  historian 
of  South  Africa,  says  that  "  within  100  years  from  the 
time  when  European  teachers  left  them,  they  had  lost  all 
knowledge  of  what  their  ancestors  had  acquired  during 
nearly  two  centuries  of  training."  The  story  of  the  east 
coast  is  similar  to  that  of  the  west  coast.  Missionaries 
belonging  to  different  Orders  began  by  quarrelling  amongst 
themselves,  and  having  lost  their  purity  of  aim  they 
eventually  lost  their  purity  of  character,  and  became 
incapable  of  inspiring  the  Africans  to  seek  after  an  ideal  at 
which  they  themselves  had  ceased  to  aim. 


AFRICA   (south)  309 


Arrival  of  the  Dutch. 

Van   Eiebeek,  who  was    commissioned  by  the  Dutch 
East  India  Company  to  estabhsh  a  victualling  station  at 
Capetown,  arrived  there    on  April    6,   1652.     He  was  a 
religious  man,  and  desired  to  spread  the  knowledge  of  the 
Christian  faith  amongst  the  native  population.     In  1662 
a  Hottentot  girl  who  had  been  servant  to  a  Dutch  master 
was  baptized,  but  the  efforts  which  were  made  by  some  of 
the  Dutch  settlers  to  teach  the  Hottentots  were  unsuccessful 
Soon  after  the  establishment  of  a  settlement  at  the  Cape* 
slaves  who  had  been  captured  at  sea  were  brought  there' 
and  ere  long  the  slave  population  became  of  considerable' 
size     During  the  first  twenty-five  years  several  efforts  were 
made  to  evangelize  these  slaves  as  well  as  the  Hottentots 
but  ere  long  these  efforts  were  relaxed,  and  the  irreligious 
lives  of   their  master   or    employers    rendered  missionary 
work  almost  impossible. 

Eeference  has  already  been  made  to  the  work  of  the 
Moravian,  George  Schmidt,  who  reached  Capetown  as 
the  first  Protestant  missionary  to  South  Africa  in  1737 
(see  p.  54),  but  was  forced  to  return  to  Europe  in  1743 
after  baptizing  5  Hottentots,  in  consequence  of  the' 
opposition  of  the  Dutch  Ministers. 

In  1795  the  rule  of  the  Dutch  East  India  Company 
came  to  an  end  and  the  English  took  possession  of  the  Cape 
In  1802  It  was  restored  by  treaty  to  the  Dutch,  but  in 
1  «Ub  it  was  finally  annexed  by  England. 

In  1792  three  Moravian  missionaries  arrived  in  order 
to  take  up  the  work  which  Schmidt  had  been  forced  to 
leave  at  Bavianskloof.  By  1806  the  number  of  baptized 
or  candidates  for  baptism,  had  reached  464.  By  1813 
this  number  had  increased  to  1157. 

(For  a  further  reference  to  Moravian  Missions  in 
South  Africa  see  p.  328.) 

We  shall  now  proceed  to  sketch  the  development  in 
different   parts  of   South    Africa   of    the  missionary  work 


310  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

supported    by    the     principal     European     and     American 
missionary  societies. 

Anglican  Missions. 

While  the  Dutch  retained  possession  of  the  Cape  no 
Anglican  services  were  allowed  to  be  held,  but  when  in 
1819  immigrants  from  England  arrived  to  settle  in  the 
eastern  districts,  the  S.P.G.  appointed  a  clergyman  to 
minister  alike  to  the  Europeans  and  to  the  African  natives. 
In  1821  the  Eev.  William  Wright  landed  in  Capetown. 
He  opened  a  school  for  coloured  children  at  Wynberg, 
and  conducted  services  for  the  coloured  people  on  Sundays. 
In  1822  he  started  and  maintained  at  his  own  expense  in 
Capetown  a  school  for  free  and  slave  children.  In  1835, 
Captain  Allen  F.  Gardiner  of  the  Eoyal  Navy  arrived  at 
Port  Natal  (Durban)  and  endeavoured,  though  without 
success,  to  establish  a  mission  station  in  Dingaan's  territory. 
Later  on,  having  obtained  Dingaan's  consent,  he  returned 
to  England  and  pleaded  with  the  C.M.S.  to  undertake  this 
mission.  In  1837  the  Eev.  Francis  Owen,  who  was  sent 
by  the  C.M.S.,  arrived  in  Capetown  with  Captain  Gardiner 
and  proceeded  to  Port  Natal.  It  soon  became  clear  that 
Dingaan  would  not  allow  missionary  work  to  be  carried 
on,  and  after  suffering  many  hardships,  Owen  and  his 
family  returned  to  Capetown  in  1838.  After  making 
another  attempt  to  carry  on  missionary  work  at  Mosega,  he 
left  South  Africa  in  1841.  Captain  Gardiner  had  already 
left  in  order  to  attempt  to  start  a  mission  in  New  Guinea,  on 
the  failure  of  which  he  eventually  sailed  for  South  America. 
This  was  the  only  effort  made  by  the  C.M.S.  to  start  a 
mission  in  South  Africa.  After  the  departure  of  Owen  and 
Captain  Gardiner  the  Anglican  Church  for  several  years 
did  nothing  towards  the  evangelization  of  South  Africa 
beyond  sending  out  a  limited  number  of  chaplains,  whose 
primary  duty  was  to  minister  to  the  European  colonists. 

So  slowly  did  the  Anglican  work  develop  that  in  1847 
there  were  only  14  clergy  and  11  churches  in  the  colony. 

The    first   Anglican    Bishop,    Robert    Gray,    who    was 


AFRICA    (south)  311 

appointed  Bishop  of  Capetown  in  1847,  was  a  man  full 
of  missionary  zeal.  He  founded  Zonnebloem  College  "  for 
the  education  of  sons  of  chiefs  from  all  parts  of  Africa 
in  the  Christian  faith,"  an  institution  which  proved  an 
immense  help  to  the  cause  of  Christian  missions  in  South 
Africa.  Before  his  death  in  1872  he  had  done  much  to 
establish  Anglican  missions  in  many  different  parts  of 
South  Africa. 

The  first  mission  station  which  he  helped  to  establish 
was  amongst  the  Xosa  people  in  Kaffraria.  His  desire 
was  to  obtain  from  Government  a  series  of  locations  where, 
under  the  direction  of  a  missionary,  the  natives  might  be 
taught  to  become  mechanics,  carpenters  and  agriculturists. 
Between  1855  and  1857  the  Home  Government  granted 
£40,000  to  subsidize  educational  and  industrial  work,  and 
the  portion  of  this  grant  which  was  entrusted  to  the 
Bishop  of  Grahamstown  (Armstrong)  was  used  by  him 
to  establish  three  stations  in  Kaffraria,  in  addition  to  the 
one  that  had  been  already  started.  These  stations  were 
named  St.  Luke's,  situated  among  the  Xosa  people,  30 
miles  east  of  King  William's  Town ;  St.  Matthew's,  at 
Keiskama  Hoek,  among  the  Fingoes  ;  St.  Mark's,  among  the 
Galekas ;  and  St.  John's,  among  the  Gaihas. 

When  Dr.  Cotterill,  the  second  Bishop  of  Grahamstown, 
was  appointed  Bishop  of  Edinburgh,  he  succeeded  in 
inducing  the  members  of  the  Scotch  Episcopal  Church  to 
take  special  interest  in  Kaffraria,  with  the  result  that  a 
Bishop  of  Kaffraria  (Dr.  H.  Callaway)  was  appointed 
in  1873.  The  first  Bishop  was  a  remarkable  Bantu 
scholar  and  an  enthusiastic  missionary. 

In  the  diocese  of  Capetown  (1847)  the  Cowley  Fathers 
and  the  All  Saints'  Sisters  of  the  Poor  carry  on  work  in 
Capetown  amongst  Bantus  and  amongst  Malays,  i.e. 
Mohammedan  immigrants.  The  S.P.G.  has  given  grants 
to  the  college  at  Zonnebloem,  and  many  of  the  European 
clergy  whom  it  helps  to  support  carry  on  missionary 
work  amongst  the  African  copulation  of  the  parishes  in 
which  they  serve. 


312  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

In  the  diocese  of  Grahamstown  (1853)  the  S.P.G. 
helps  to  support  the  training  and  industrial  schools  at 
Keiskama  Hoek,  which  have  about  350  pupils.  In  this 
diocese  is  found  the  majority  of  the  members  of  the 
Ethiopian  Order,  under  the  Eev.  J.  M.  Dwan^,  who  are  in 
communion  with  the  Anglican  Church  (see  p.  338). 

In  1911  a  new  diocese  of  George  was  constituted  to 
include  part  of  the  diocese  of  Capetown  and  of 
Grahamstown. 

In  the  diocese  of  St.  John's,  Kaffraria  (1873),  which  is 
almost  entirely  a  missionary  diocese,  there  are  6  3  clergy,  of 
whom  28  are  Africans.  The  educational  establishments 
include  a  "  Callaway  Memorial "  College  at  St.  John's,  St. 
Bede's  Theological  College  and  an  industrial  mission  at 
Umtata,  and  a  girls'  training  school  at  Engcobo.  At  the 
theological  college  a  large  number  of  African  clergy  have 
been  trained.  One  of  them.  Canon  Masiza,  who  was  for 
more  than  fifty  years  a  missionary,  proved  conclusively 
that  it  is  possible  for  an  African  to  minister  to  colonial 
{i.e.  European)  congregations,  and  to  be  loved  and  respected 
by  those  not  of  his  own  colour.^ 

The  first  bishop  of  the  diocese  of  Natal  (1853)  was 
Dr.  J.  W.  Colenso.  Soon  after  his  appointment  he  caused 
distress  to  many  missionaries  by  urging  that  polygamists 
should  be  allowed  to  be  baptized.  Later  on,  the  book 
which  he  published  on  higher  criticism  applied  to  the 
O.T.  resulted,  after  a  long  period  of  controversy,  in  his  trial 
and  deposition  by  Bishop  Gray,  who  proceeded  to  appoint 
a  successor  in  his  place.  Bishop  Colenso,  however, 
supported  by  the  civil  courts  and  by  a  section  of  his 
clergy,  continued  in  Natal  till  his  death  in  1883.  The 
unhappy  division  which  had  been  created  in  the  diocese 
was  not  finally  healed  till  1901.  Despite  the  long-con- 
tinued ecclesiastical  dispute  a  good  deal  of  missionary 
work  has  been  accomplished. 

St.  Alban's  native  training  college  at  Estcourb  has 
educated  and  sent  forth  a  considerable  number  of  clergy, 

1  South  Africa^  by  Bishop  Baynes,  p.  129. 


AFRICA    (south)  313 

catechists  and  teachers,  who   are   at   work  in  Natal  and 
Zululand. 

Successful  mission  work  has  also  been  carried  on 
amongst  the  large  population  of  immigrants  from  India, 
especially  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Durban.  There  is  a 
boarding  school  for  boys  at  Eiverdale  and  one  for  girls  at 
Enhlonhlweni,  and  a  home  for  girls  at  Maritzburg.  There 
are  about  8000  baptized  African  Christians  in  the  diocese 
connected  with  the  Anglican  missions. 

The  diocese  of  Zululand,  which  was  formed  in  1870, 
was  the  outcome  of  the  Memorial  Mission  which  was 
established  in  memory  of  Bishop  Charles  Mackenzie,  who 
was  a  missionary  in  Natal  and  was  afterwards  appointed 
Bishop  for  the  U.M.C.A.  The  diocese  includes  Zululand, 
Tongaland,  Swaziland  and  the  districts  of  Vryheid,' 
Utrecht  and  Piet  Eetief.  Its  African  population  is  about 
200,000. 

The  chief  centres  of  work  are  at  Kwa  Magwaza,  where 
there  is  a  training  college  for  African  teachers  and  cate- 
chists, also  a  mission  hospital,  and  St.  Augustine's,  near 
Eorke's  Drift,  where  Archdeacon  Johnson  superintends  the 
work  carried  on  at  about  seventy  different  centres.  The  first 
Anglican  missionary  was  the  Eev.  E.  Eobertson,  who  entered 
the  country  in  1860  and  established  himself  with  other 
workers  at  Kwa  Magwaza  in  the  days  of  King  Panda. 
Later  on  a  station  was  opened  in  Swaziland,  near  the 
river  Usutu.  After  the  death  of  Bishop  Mackenzie 
(1862)  a  Mackenzie  Memorial  Mission  to  Zululand  was 
formed. 

There  are  34  Anglican  clergy  at  work  in  the  diocese, 
of  whom  14  are  Africans. 

The  diocese  of  Bloemfontein,  which  was  formed  in 
1863,  now  includes  the  Orange  Free  State  and  Basuto- 
land.  It  has  been  suggested  that  the  Anglican  Church 
ought  not  to  have  established  a  mission  at  Thaba  Nchu  in 
Basutoland,  inasmuch  as  the  Paris  Mission  was  already 
represented  there,  but  in  view  of  the  fact  that  this  place 
was  the  centre  of  a  wide  district,  the  vast  majoi^ty  of  the 


314  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

inhabitants  of  which  were  still  heathens,  it  cannot  be 
maintained  that  "  effective  occupation  "  had  been  established 
by  this  mission. 

The  spirit  in  which  the  Anglican  work  was  organized 
may  best  be  described  in  the  words  of  Canon  Widdicombe, 
its  chief  organizer,  who  stated  that  the  desire  of  the 
Anglican  missionaries  was,  "  to  respect  the  labours  of 
those  missionaries  already  in  the  country,  who,  in  the 
present  divided  state  of  Christendom,  are  unhappily  not 
in  communion  with  our  branch  of  the  Church  catholic :  not 
to  receive  into  the  communion  of  the  (Anglican)  Church, 
should  they  desire  to  enter  it,  Christians  of  other  rehgious 
bodies  under  censure  for  evil  conduct,  or  any  whose  motives 
for  wishing  to  unite  with  us  were  not,  as  far  as  could  be 
judged,  pure  and  above  reproach."  ^ 

The  missionary  activities  in  the  diocese  include  St. 
Mary's  Training  College  for  Women  Teachers  at  Thlotse 
Heights,  Basutoland,  St.  Catherine's  Industrial  Girls' 
School  at  Maseru,  the  work  of  the  Society  of  the  Sacred 
Mission  at  Modderpoort,  and  of  the  Sisterhood  of  St. 
Michael  and  All  Angels  at  Bloemfontein. 

In  1911  the  diocese  was  divided  and  a  new  diocese  of 
Kimherley  and  Kuruman  was  formed,  which  includes  the 
whole  of  Bechuanaland  and  Griqualand  West,  with 
Kimherley  as  its  centre.  The  missionary  work  of  the 
Anglican  Church  is  chiefly  carried  on  in  South  Bechuana- 
land, the  principal  centre  being  Phokoane.  The  majority 
of  the  clergy  are  Africans. 

The  diocese  of  Pretoria  was  formed  in  1877,  but  until 
after  the  Boer  War  comparatively  little  missionary  work 
could  be  attempted.  The  chief  centre  of  work  is  the  Eand, 
near  Johannesburg,  which  is  a  series  of  towns  extending 
for  fifty  miles.  An  effort  has  been  made  to  establish  a 
strong  centre  at  Johannesburg,  with  a  school  for  catechists. 
The  European  missionaries  pay  sectional  visits  along  the 
Eeef  and  African  catechists  are  stationed  at  the  large 
centres,  whilst  travelling  catechists  work  in  the  intervening 

'^Fourteen  Years  in  Basutoland,  p.  75. 


AFRICA   (south)  315 

country.  The  contributions  received  from  the  Africans  are 
sufficient  to  pay  the  salaries  of  the  catechists.  The  work 
is  chiefly  carried  on  by  the  Community  of  the  Eesurrection 
in  connection  with  the  S.P.G.  Work  amongst  women  on 
the  Eand  is  also  carried  on. 

The  diocese  of  Mashonaland'^  was  formed  in  1891,  the 
headquarters  of  the  missionary  organization  being  at  Fort 
Salisbury.  The  chief  mission  centres  are  at  Penhalonga, 
where  there  are  industrial  schools  for  boys  and  girls  (in 
which  240  boys  and  80  girls  are  being  trained),  Salisbury, 
Buluwayo,  Bembezi,  Francistown,  Wreningham,  Victoria 
and  Eusape. 

The  moral  and  social  improvement  of  the  natives, 
which  has  been  the  visible  outcome  of  the  missionary  work 
done  amongst  them,  has  done  much  in  Mashonaland  to  enlist 
the  sympathies  of  the  European  population,  which  through- 
out South  Africa  has  been  frequently  antagonistic  to  mis- 
sionary work.  The  change  of  opinion  that  has  been  effected 
in  Mashonaland  may  be  illustrated  by  a  recent  statement 
which  occurred  in  the  leading  newspaper  at  Buluwayo : 
"  He  who  scoffs  or  sneers  at  missions  writes  himself  down 
as  a  fool  or  something  worse." 

The  baptized  Christians  connected  with  the  Anglican 
missions  number  about  6000. 

The  diocese  of  Lehomho,  which  was  formed  in  1891,  and 
of  which  the  first  bishop  (Dr.  Smyth)  was  consecrated  in 
1893,  is  in  Portuguese  territory,  and  includes  Delagoa  Bay 
and  the  country  which  lies  between  the  Lebombo  Mountains 
and  the  Indian  Ocean.  The  total  population  is  about 
700,000.  At  St.  Christopher's  College  in  the  Lebombo 
Mountains,  which  was  founded  in  1901,  African  clergy  and 
catechists  are  being  trained,  their  training  including  a 
course  of  manual  labour.  Other  centres  of  work  are  at 
LourenQO  Marques,  Inhambane  East  and  West,  and  in 
Chopiland.  The  population  consists  chiefly  of  Bantu  tribes, 
who  speak  several  different  languages. 

^  The  title  of  the  diocese  is  about  to  be  changed  to  Southern  Rhodesia. 


316  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  London  Missionary  Society. 

In  1799,  during  the  first  British  occupation  of  the 
Cape,  the  "  South  African  Society  for  Promoting  the  Exten- 
sion of  Christ's  Kingdom  "  was  formed  by  Dr.  Van  der 
Kemp  and  the  Kev.  M.  C.  Vos.  The  former  had  recently 
arrived  as  a  representative  of  the  L.M.S.,  which  was 
formed  in  1795.  The  Dutch  Government  from  1802-6 
hindered  the  extension  of  their  work,  but  on  the  restora- 
tion of  British  government  it  began  to  expand.  Van 
der  Kemp  married  a  daughter  of  a  slave  "  of  Madagascar 
extraction,"  and  three  other  of  the  L.M.S.  missionaries 
married  Hottentot  wives,  a  fact  which  created  great 
prejudice  against  them  and  their  work  amongst  the  Dutch 
settlers.  Work  was  started  amongst  the  Hottentots  in 
Griqualand,  amongst  the  Bechuanas,  and  amongst  the 
Namaquas,  but,  partly  in  consequence  of  the  difficult 
character  of  the  peoples  amongst  whom  they  worked,  and 
partly  in  consequence  of  the  lack  of  wisdom  and  missionary 
enthusiasm  on  the  part  of  the  early  missionaries,  the 
progress  made  was  slow  and  discouraging.  Van  der 
Kemp,  after  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  work  in  Kafirland, 
settled  first  at  Graaff  Keinet  and  afterwards  at  Bethelsdorp, 
near  Algoa  Bay,  where  he  gathered  a  small  society  of 
Christian  Hottentots.  He  died  in  1811.  In  this  year 
the  work  of  the  L.M.S.  was  separated  from  that  of  the 
"  South  African  Society  for  Promoting  the  Extension  of 
Christ's  Kingdom "  and  was  placed  under  the  super- 
intendence of  one  of  the  L.M.S.  missionaries  in  South 
Africa.  From  this  time  onwards  the  L.M.S.  missionaries 
had  occasion  to  make  frequent  complaints,  both  to  the 
local  authorities  and  to  the  Government  at  home,  of  the 
ill-treatment  which  the  Hottentots  and  other  African 
peoples  received  at  the  hands  of  the  English  and  Dutch 
colonists.  The  missionaries  were  sometimes  prejudiced 
or  ill-informed,  but  in  many  cases  their  complaints  were 
justified,  and  the  Africans  benefited  by  their  interference. 

In  1859  the  L.M.S.  formed  the  cougregations  which  it 


AFRICA    (south)  317 

had  helped  to  establish  in  Cape  Colony  into  a  Congrega- 
tional Union.  In  1883  these  congregations  were  received 
into  the  fellowship  of  the  "  Congregational  Union  of  South 
Africa,"  and  ceased  to  have  any  direct  connection  with  the 
Society  at  home. 

In  1816,  Rohert  Moffat  (h.  1795),  who  had  been  an 
under-gardener  in  Scotland,  was  sent  by  the  L.M.S.  as 
a  missionary  to  South  Africa.  After  a  period  of  waiting 
at  Stellenbosch  he  reached  Afrikaner's  Kraal  in  Namaqua- 
land  in  1818.  In  1821,  at  the  request  of  the  L.M.S. 
superintendent  in  South  Africa,  he  started  work  amongst 
the  Bechuanas  and  settled  on  the  banks  of  the  Kuruman 
Eiver.  In  1829  the  mission  work  began  to  bear  visible 
fruit  and  the  first  six  converts  were  baptized.  In  1837, 
Moffat  visited  England  in  order  to  arrange  for  the  printing 
of  his  Sechuana  version  of  the  New  Testament  and  was 
received  with  the  greatest  enthusiasm. 

In  1843  he  returned  to  South  Africa,  and  by  1857  he 
had  completed  the  translation  of  the  whole  of  the  Bible 
into  Sechuana.  In  1870,  after  nearly  fifty  years  spent  in 
South  Africa,  he  retired  from  active  work  and  died  in 
1883,  aged  eighty-seven.  He  and  Dr.  Livingstone,  his 
son-in-law,  have  left  an  enduring  impress  upon  missionary 
work  in  South  Africa. 

After  his  death  his  son  continued  for  a  time  in  charge  of 
the  mission  at  Kuruman,  which  included  the  Moffat  institu- 
tion for  the  training  of  African  evangelists.  This  institution 
was  subsequently  removed  to  Tiger  Kloof,  near  Vryburg. 

David  Livingstone,  who  was  born  at  Blantyre, 
March  19,  1813,  began  work  in  a  factory  at  the  age 
of  ten,  and  worked  from  6  a.m.  to  8  p.m.  Part  of  his 
first  week's  wages  were  spent  on  the  purchase  of  a  Latin 
grammar,  and  by  attending  a  night  school  after  his  work 
in  the  mill  he  prepared  himself  for  Glasgow  University, 
where,  supporting  himself  meanwhile,  he  took  his  medical 
degree.  He  then  volunteered  to  the  L.M.S.  to  go  as  a 
missionary  to  China,  but  was  sent  to  Africa.  When  called 
upon  as  a  student  to  preach  a  sermon  he  gave  out  a  text 


318  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

and  then  said,  "  Friends,  I  have  forgotten  all  I  had  to  say," 
and  forthwith  left  the  chapel.  In  1841,  at  the  age  of 
twenty-eight,  he  sailed  for  Africa.  From  1841  to  1852 
he  acted  as  a  missionary,  and  from  1852  to  1873  as  a 
missionary  explorer.  His  first  station  was  at  Mabotsa, 
where  he  married  a  daughter  of  Dr.  Moffat.  The  chief, 
Sechele,  became  a  Christian,  and  Christian  influence  had 
begun  to  spread  widely  when  the  Boers  attacked  and 
plundered  the  town  and  carried  off  200  of  the  mission 
children  as  slaves,  after  burning  the  mission-house  and 
school.^  It  was,  to  a  large  extent,  Livingstone's  horror  of 
slavery  as  he  saw  it  in  South  Africa  that  turned  him 
into  an  explorer.  The  ambition  which  he  formed  was  to 
open  up  Central  Africa  in  order  that  by  the  establishment 
of  proper  trade-routes  and  by  the  discovery  of  satisfactory 
outlets  to  the  sea,  the  slave-trade  might  be  rendered 
unnecessary  and  eventually  be  suppressed. 

It  is  not  possible  to  do  more  than  give  the  briefest 
outline  of  his  travels.  His  first  long  journey  of  explora- 
tion was  to  Loanda  on  the  west  coast,  in  Portuguese 
Africa.  By  this  journey  he  established  the  fact  that  much 
country  which  had  been  supposed  to  be  desert  was  fertile 
land  through  which  ran  a  magnificent  waterway.  Keturn- 
ing  overland  from  Loanda  in  order  to  restore  his  twenty- 
seven  Makololo  companions  to  their  homes,  he  turned 
east  and,  after  discovering  the  Victoria  Falls,  reached  the 
coast  at  Quilimane.  Thence  he  returned  to  England,  and 
at  the  historic  meeting  held  in  the  Senate  House  at 
Cambridge  in  1857,  which  resulted  in  the  formation  of 
the  Universities'  Mission  to  Central  Africa,  he  ended  his 
address  with  the  words,  "  I  know  that  in  a  few  years  I  shall 
be  cut  off  in  that  country  which  is  now  open :  do  not  let 
it  be  shut  again.  I  go  back  to  Africa  to  try  and  make  an 
open  path  for  commerce  and  Christianity.  Do  you  carry 
out  the  work  which  I  have  begun.      I  leave  it  with  you." 

The  direct  result  of  this  speech  was  the  starting  of  the 

*  See  Missionary    Travels  and  Researches  in   South  Africa,  by  David 
Livingstone,  p.  39.     Published  1857. 


AFRICA    (south)  319 

Universities'  Mission  to  Central  Africa,  which  now  works 
in  Zanzibar,  German  East  Africa  and  Northern  Ehodesia. 
On  his  return  to  Africa,  Livingstone  explored  the  Zambesi 
and  the  Shire,  and  discovered  Lake  Nyasa.  Later  on,  he 
crossed  the  Indian  Ocean  in  a  small  river  steamer,  navi- 
gated by  himself,  and  after  his  return  to  Africa  spent  the 
last  two  years  of  his  life  searching  for  the  sources  of  the  Nile. 
Eescued  by  Stanley  when  in  great  distress  at  Ujiji  in  1872, 
he  refused  to  return  to  England,  and  died  on  his  knees  in 
prayer  at  Ilala  to  the  south  of  Lake  Bangweolo  on  May  1, 
1873. 

The  annals  of  missionary  enterprise  contain  no  more 
wonderful  illustration  of  the  love  wherewith  a  missionary 
has  inspired  his  followers  than  that  afforded  by  the 
conduct  of  Susi  and  Chuma,  the  two  Africans  who,  after 
embalming  their  teacher's  body,  carried  it  for  hundreds  of 
miles  through  hostile  tribes,  at  the  peril  of  their  own 
lives,  and  delivered  it  at  length  to  English  officials  on  the 
coast.  The  inscription  which  is  placed  over  the  spot  where 
the  body  now  rests  in  Westminster  Abbey,  reads : 

"  Brought  by  faithful  hands  over  land  and  sea,  here  rests 
David  Livingstone,  missionary,  traveller,  philanthropist; 
born  March  19, 1813,  at  Blantyre,  Lanarkshire ;  died  May  4=} 
1873,  at  Chitambo's  village,  Ilala.  For  thirty  years  his  life 
was  spent  in  an  unwearied  effort  to  evangelize  the  native 
races,  to  explore  the  undiscovered  secrets,  and  abolish  the 
desolating  slave-trade  of  Central  Africa,  where  with  his  last 
words  he  wrote :  *  All  I  can  say  in  my  solitude  is,  may 
Heaven's  rich  blessing  come  down  on  every  one — American, 
English,  Turk — who  will  help  to  heal  this  open  sore  of  the 
world.'" 

Livingstone's  claim  to  fame  as  an  explorer  is  a 
unique  one.  He  travelled  twenty-nine  thousand  miles  in 
Africa,  and  added  to  the  parts  of  the  world  known  to 
civilized  men  nearly  one  million  square  miles.  Although 
equipped  with  but  third-rate  instruments,  he  recorded 
his  innumerable   observations  with   scientific  accuracy  and 

'  This  date  should  probably  be  May  1. 


320  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

contributed  more  towards  the  construction  of  the  map  of 
Africa  than  perhaps  any  three  other  explorers  who  could 
be  named.  It  was  not,  however,  as  an  explorer  that  he 
lived  and  died.  He  was  primarily  and  above  all  else  a 
missionary.  He  wrote  of  himself :  "  I  am  a  missionary, 
heart  and  soul.  God  had  an  only  Son  and  He  was  a 
missionary.  A  poor,  poor  imitation  of  Him  I  am  or  wish 
to  be.  In  this  service  I  hope  to  live,  in  it  I  wish  to  die." 
The  primary  task  which  he  set  before  him  was  the 
abolition  of  the  slave-trade,  and  his  life  and  death  hastened 
by  many  long  years  the  accomplishment  of  this  object. 
The  writer  of  this  volume  has  himself  witnessed  in  West 
Africa  many  of  the  horrors  of  the  slave-trade  which 
Livingstone  often  described,  but  here,  as  well  as  in  the  wide 
districts  which  Livingstone  traversed,  slave-raiding  is  now 
no  more. 

The  secret  of  Livingstone's  success,  as  of  that  of  every 
other  great  missionary,  was  his  capacity  for  sympathy. 
His  Christlike  sympathy — we  can  use  no  other  epithet 
— enabled  him  to  win  the  confidence  of  the  African  chiefs 
whom  he  visited,  of  their  peoples  amongst  whom  he  stayed, 
and  of  the  carriers  who  formed  his  travelling  companions. 
Apart  from  the  indomitable  will  and  the  unfaltering 
courage  which  he  possessed  he  could  not  have  attempted 
the  task  that  he  essayed,  but  without  the  loving  sympathy, 
which  was  a  divine  gift,  his  task  would  have  remained 
unaccomplished. 

In  1856,  on  tlie  occasion  of  Livingstone's  visit  to 
England,  the  L.M.S.  arranged  to  start  a  mission  among  the 
Matabele  in  Southern  Ehodesia.  It  would  be  difficult  to 
name  any  mission  field  where  so  much  heroic  and  self-denying 
labour  has  been  expended  with  so  little  visible  result. 
The  pioneer,  Thomas  Sykes,  died  in  1887  without  having 
baptized  a  single  convert.  Coillard,  writing  in  1878, 
said :  "  You  ask  me  what  influence  the  gospel  has  had  up 
till  now  on  this  savage  nation  ?  Alas  !  apparently  none 
whatever.  I  confess  it  is  the  most  perplexing  problem  of 
modern  missions.   .  .  .  (the  missionaries)  have  laboured  for 


AFRICA    (south)  321 

twenty  years  in  this  country.  In  spite  of  all  these  efforts 
and  sacrifices  there  is  no  school,  no  church,  not  a  single 
convert.  In  fact,  I  do  not  know  which  ought  most  to 
astonish  the  Christian  world,  the  barrenness  of  this  mission 
field  or  the  courage  and  perseverance  of  these  noble 
servants  of  Christ,  who  have  for  so  long  ploughed  and 
sown  in  tears."  After  the  defeat  and  exile  of  Lobengula 
in  1894  a  little  progress  was  made,  but  the  mission  con- 
tinues to  be  one  of  the  most  discouraging  in  South  Africa. 

A  much  more  encouraging  mission  was  established 
in  1862  at  Shoshong  amongst  the  Bamangwato  tribe  in 
Bechuanaland.  Khama,  the  son  of  the  chief,  who  had  em- 
braced  Christianity,  established  himself  after  some  fighting 
as  chief^  at  Shoshong.  From  the  first  he  showed  his  resolve 
to  banish  heathen  customs  and  to  govern  according 
to  Christian  principles.  His  kingdom  to-day  affords  a 
unique  example  of  a  country  governed  by  an  African 
chief  whose  conduct  conforms  to  the  teaching  of  Christi- 
anity. His  capital  was  moved  later  on  to  Palapye,  and 
again  moved  to  Serowe. 

The  L.M.S.  stations  in  Bechuanaland  include  Kuruman, 
Tiger  Kloof  and  Vryburg,  and  in  the  Bechuanaland  Pro- 
tectorate Molopolole  and  Kanye. 

The  total  number  of  baptized  Christians  in  connection 
with  the  L.M.S.  missions  in  South  Africa  is  about  22,000. 

Wesleyan  Missions. 

In  1816  the  Rev.  B.  Shaw,  a  Methodist  minister  who 
had  been  sent  by  the  W.M.S.,  reached  Capetown,  and  a  few 
months  later  settled  at  Kamiesbergen  in  Namaqualand. 
His  work  lay  chiefly  amongst  Namaqua  Hottentots,  with 
whom  were  intermingled  representatives  of  several  other 
races.  After  ten  years  he  was  removed  to  Capetown  to 
work  amongst  Europeans. 

In  1823  work  was  begun  amongst  the  Kafirs  in 
Kaffraria,  six  stations  being  established,  forming  a  chain 
'^OO  miles  long.     In  1822,  Samuel  Broadbent  established 


2..  .. 

21 


322  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

a  pioneer  mission  amongst  the  Baralong  in  Bechuanaland. 
In  1833  the  people  amongst  whom  the  mission  was  work- 
ing migrated  to  Thaba  Nchu  in  Basutoland,  accompanied 
by  their  missionaries.  Since  1832  the  Wesleyan  Church 
in  South  Africa  has  had  an  independent  organization,  and  as 
the  Wesleyan  Methodist  South  African  Missionary  Society 
it  carries  on  work  independently  of  the  W.M.S.  in  England. 

It  is  difficult  to  trace  the  subsequent  development  of 
Wesleyan  missions,  as  in  their  reports  work  amongst 
Africans  is  not  distinguished  from  that  amongst  Europeans. 
After  making  an  encouraging  start  the  various  Wesleyan 
missions  for  many  years  made  but  slow  progress,  a  fact 
which  was  partly  due  to  the  series  of  native  wars,  and  to 
the  "  cattle-killing  delusion  "  which  impoverished  the  people 
in  Kaffraria  in  1857.  After  1866,  when  a  revival  took 
place,  there  came  a  period  of  steady  growth.  In  1847  a 
new  mission  was  started  at  Edendale  in  Swaziland  which  has 
developed  considerably  since. 

According  to  the  returns  of  the  Government  census  of 
the  Union  of  South  Africa  for  1911,  there  are  396,797 
Wesleyans  and  53,100  connected  with  the  American 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church.  These  figures  include 
Europeans. 

The  A.M.E.G.  started  work  at  Old  Umtali  in  Southern 
Ehodesia  in  1899  and  at  Inhambane  and  Beira  on  the  east 
coast  in  1901.  The  work  in  Southern  Ehodesia  has  made 
some  progress  and  there  are  about  1200  baptized  converts. 

The  Free  Methodist  Church  has  a  few  stations  in  Natal 
and  one  at  Germiston,  near  Johannesburg. 

French  Missions. 

In  1829  three  missionaries  sent  by  the  Paris  Evan- 
gelical Missionary  Society  reached  Capetown,  one  of  whom 
began  work  amongst  Hottentots  at  Wellington,  whilst  the 
other  two  went  north  and  started  work  at  Motito,  near 
Kuruman.  In  1834,  at  the  invitation  of  Moshesh,  the 
Basuto  chief,  work  was  begun  near  Thaba  Bosiu  (Bosigo). 


AFRICA    (south)  323 

In  this  district  the  work  rapidly  developed.  From  the 
beginning  of  the  work  at  Thaba  Bosiu  the  chief  Moshesh, 
accompanied  by  400  of  his  people,  attended  the  Sunday 
services.  By  1850  eleven  stations  had  been  occupied  and 
1200  Christians  had  been  baptized.  In  1858  the  mission 
staff  was  joined  by  rran9ois  Coillard,  one  of  the  most  devoted 
and  successful  of  the  missionaries  who  have  worked  in  South 
Africa.  During  the  wars  and  disputes  of  the  next  ten  years 
between  the  Basutos  and  the  Boers  of  the  Free  State  the 
mission  suffered  considerably,  and  for  a  period  of  three  years 
the  13  French  missionaries  were  kept  out  of  Basutoland 
by  the  Boers.  In  1869,  when  Great  Britain  came  to 
the  assistance  of  the  Basutos,  the  mission  was  resumed. 
During  the  absence  of  the  missionaries  a  revival  had  taken 
place  and  436  candidates  for  baptism  were  awaiting  their 
return.      Since  then  the  mission  has  steadily  progressed. 

In  1884  a  number  of  Christians  from  Basutoland 
under  the  leadership  of  Coillard  established  a  mission 
amongst  the  Barotsi  people  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
Zambesi.  The  Barotsi  were  a  far  more  backward  and 
degraded  race  than  the  Basutos,  and,  according  to  Coillard, 
it  took  twenty  years  "  to  bring  the  Barotsi  up  to  the  social 
level  of  the  Basuto  when  mission  work  began  among  them 
in  1833."! 

The  climate  proved  very  unhealthy,  and  in  three  years, 
1899-1901,  9  missionaries  died.  The  last  seven  years  of 
Coillard 's  life  (he  died  in  1904)  were  clouded  with  sorrow 
and  anxiety  in  regard  to  the  future  of  his  mission.  In 
his  will  he  had  written:  "I  solemnly  bequeath  to  the 
Churches  of  France,  my  native  land,  the  responsibility  of 
the  Lord's  work  in  Barotsiland,  and  I  adjure  them  in  His 
Holy  name,  never  to  give  it  up— which  would  be  to  despise 
and  renounce  the  rich  harvest  reserved  to  the  sowing  they 
have  accomplished  in  suffering  and  tears." 

In  1910  there  were  in  the  Basutoland  and  Barotsiland 
Missions  15  head  stations,  with  43  European  missionaries 
and  17,100  baptized  members. 

^  Life  of  Frangois  Coillard,  p.  329. 


324  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Scottish  Missions. 

The  Glasgow  Missionary  Society,  which  was  formed  in 
1796,  and  the  work  of  which  was  eventually  taken  over 
by  the  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland,  sent  out  in  1820 
the  Eev.  W.  R  Thomson,  who  joined  a  representative 
of  the  L.M.S.  who  had  settled  amongst  Gaika's  people  in 
Kaffraria.  Two  further  representatives  of  the  Glasgow 
Society  founded  the  station  of  Lovedale  in  1824. 

During  the  Kafir  War,  1834-35,  Lovedale  and  other 
mission  stations  were  laid  in  ruins,  and  at  the  close  of  the 
war  Lovedale  was  rebuilt  on  a  new  site  on  the  west  bank 
of  the  river  Chumie.  In  1840  the  educational  and 
industrial  work  at  Lovedale  was  greatly  enlarged,  but  in 
the  war  of  1846  it  was  again  nearly  destroyed.  In  1850 
another  war  broke  out  which  caused  widespread  destruction, 
but  the  progress  which  Christian  missions  had  made  was 
evinced  by  the  fact  that  in  this  war  1500  African 
Christians  refused  to  side  with  their  fellow-countrymen. 
When  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland  was  constituted  in 
1843  the  missionaries  in  South  Africa  became  members 
of  it,  and  the  Glasgow  Missionary  Society  was  placed  under 
the  Free  Church's  Foreign  Missions  Committee. 

After  the  close  of  the  Kafir  War  of  1851  the  mission- 
aries rebuilt  Lovedale  with  the  aid  of  a  Government  grant, 
and  it  gradually  became  one  of  the  most  important 
missionary  centres  in  South  Africa.  The  wide  influence 
which  it  has  exerted  throughout  South  Africa  has  been 
largely  due  to  the  work  of  Dr.  James  Stewart,  who  became 
Principal  in  1867  and  continued  for  nearly  forty  years. 
Carpentry,  masonry,  wagon-making,  blacksmithing,  and 
every  kind  of  industrial  work  in  addition  to  various 
branches  of  general  education  were  started.  Between 
1870  and  1874  the  number  of  students  rose  from  92  to 
480,  and  the  fees  paid  by  them  steadily  increased.  In 
1907  the  fees  received  amounted  to  £5503.  There  are 
now  (1914)  526  scholars. 

In  1877  Blythswood,  in  the  Transkei,  was  founded  in 


AFRICA  (south)  325 

direct  imitation  of  Lovedale,  the  Fingoes,  for  whose  benefit 
it  was  started,  having  first  contributed  £1000  towards  its 
cost.  The  United  Free  Church  started  work  on  the 
Emgwali  Eiver,  and  work  at  several  other  centres  in  close 
co-operation  with  the  United  Free  Church  missionaries  has 
also  been  carried  on  by  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland  in 
East  Griqualand,  and  in  the  Greytown  district  of  Natal. 

"  The  real  value  of  the  Scottish  missions  in  South  Africa 
lies  not  so  much  in  the  extent  of  territory  which  they  cover 
— though  this  is  by  no  means  inconsiderable — as  in  the 
widespread  influence  wielded  by  their  educational  establish- 
ments. Lovedale,  Blythswood,  Emgw^ali  are  names  that 
stand  out  as  landmarks  in  the  history  of  educational 
mission  work  in  South  Africa.  Of  Lovedale  this  is  true 
in  an  especial  degree.  Its  students  are  found  all  over 
South  Africa,  filling  various  positions  of  trust  and  responsi- 
bility, as  native  ministers,  catechists,  teachers,  tradesmen, 
farmers,  interpreters,  clerks,  employees  and  servants.  .  .  . 
We  may  sincerely  echo  the  prayer  that,  under  the  hand  of 
God,  the  promise  of  its  future  may  be  even  greater  than  the 
performance  of  its  past."  ^ 

German  Missions. 

The  Rhenish  Missionary  Society,  which  began  to  send 
men  to  South  Africa  in  1829,  supports  work  on  the  west 
coast  between  Capetown  and  the  Orange  Eiver.  Its 
chief  centres  are  Worcester,  Stellenbosch,  Wupperthal, 
Sharon  and  Steinkop.  It  has  also  a  station  at  Carnarvon. 
Part  of  its  work  in  Namaqualand  and  Damaraland  lies  in 
German  South-West  Africa.  The  total  number  of  baptized 
converts  is  about  16,000. 

The  Berlin  Missionary  Society  (Die  Gesellschaft  zur 
Beforderung  der  evangelischen  Missionen  unter  den  Heiden), 
which  was  established  in  1824,  sent  5  missionaries  to 
South  Africa  in  1834.  They  began  work  amongst  the 
Koranna  between  the  Orange  and  Vaal  Eivers,  and  four 
years  later  joined  with  the  South  African  Mission  Society 

*  Christian  Missions  in  South  Africa,  by  Du  Plessis,  p.  364  f. 


326  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

in  work  which  this  society  had  started  in  Cape  Colony,  and 
eventually  founded  a  number  of  stations  in  Kaffraria  and 
in  Griqualand  East.  Their  work  lay  both  amongst  the 
Hottentots  and  the  Kafirs.  Up  to  1853  their  work  was 
greatly  interrupted  by  the  various  Kafir  wars.  In  1860 
pioneer  missionaries  went  north  to  the  Transvaal,  and  in 
1865  they  established  a  mission  at  Botshabelo,  near 
Middelburg,  which  soon  prospered  greatly.  During  the 
following  ten  years  (1865—75)  fourteen  new  stations  were 
opened  in  the  Transvaal,  where  the  work  has  so  greatly 
developed  that  it  exceeds  that  of  any  other  missionary 
society  in  the  Transvaal. 

A  mission  to  Mashonaland  was  organized  in  1892,  but 
after  three  stations  had  been  opened  the  Society  transferred 
them  in  1907  to  the  Dutch  Reformed  Church. 

In  addition  to  the  centres  already  mentioned  the 
Society  has  established  missions  at  Ladysmith  (1856), 
Riversdale  (1868),  Herbertsdale  (1872),  Mossel  Bay 
(1879),  Laingsburg  (1884),  Capetown  (1907),  and  has 
seven  centres  in  Natal.  The  total  number  of  baptized 
converts  is  about  24,000.  Amongst  its  more  notable 
missionaries  have  been  Wuras,  who  worked  at  Bethany  in 
Kaffraria  for  nearly  fifty  years,  and  Grtitzner,  who  worked 
as  a  missionary  at  Bethany  and  elsewhere  for  forty-nine 
years.  Its  staff  of  European  workers  is  160,  including  67 
ordained  ministers.  It  has  also  21  ordained  African 
ministers.  Its  work  is  carried  on  at  55  chief  stations  and 
nearly  1000  sub-stations. 

The  Hermannshurg  Mission. — In  1854,  Pastor  Ludwig 
Harms  of  Hermannsburg  in  Hanover  dispatched  a  boat 
containing  12  missionaries  and  8  colonists  to  found  a 
mission  in  South  Africa.  Their  first  centre  was  at  a  place 
to  which  they  gave  the  name  Hermannsburg,  near  Grey- 
town,  in  Natal.  The  attempts  at  colonization  were  not 
successful,  but  the  mission  succeeded  in  giving  a  large 
amount  of  useful  industrial  training  to  the  natives  amongst 
whom  it  was  established. 

In  1857,  on  the  invitation  of  Pretorius,  President  of 


AFRICA   (south)  327 

the  Orange  Free  State,  work  was  established  at  Shoshong, 
where  one  of  the  missionaries  baptized  Khama  (see  account 
of  L.M.S.  mission  to  the  Bechuanas,  p.  321). 

A  few  years  later  several  stations  were  opened  in 
the  Western  Transvaal. 

The  baptized  Christians  connected  with  the  Hermanns- 
burg  Mission  number  about  25,000. 

The  Hanoverian  Free  Church  Mission,  which  started  in 
1878  as  an  offshoot  of  the  Hermannsburg  Mission,  has 
8  stations,  with  10  European  missionaries  and  about 
6000  converts. 

The  American  Board  Missions  (A.B.O.F.M.). 

In  1834  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions  sent  six  missionaries  to  South  Africa, 
hoping  to  start  work  amongst  the  Zulus.  The  missionaries 
were  allowed  by  the  chief  Dingaan  to  settle  at  Port 
Natal,  but  in  consequence  of  a  war  between  him  and 
the  Boers  they  and  the  C.M.S.  missionary,  Owen,  were 
forced  to  leave  the  country.  One  of  their  number, 
Lindley,  was  eventually  appointed  a  minister  by  the  Dutch 
Volksraad.  Two  others  carried  on  missionary  work  at 
the  Umgeni  and  Umlazi  Eivers.  By  1850  twelve  stations 
had  been  established  which  were  occupied  by  14 
missionaries,  and  123  baptized  members  were  reported. 
By  1870  these  had  increased  to  500.  During  recent 
years  the  mission  has  been  steadily  expanding,  and  after 
1894  the  American  Board  was  not  called  upon  to  make 
any  grant  towards  the  support  of  African  congregations  or 
African  preachers  in  Natal.  The  majority  of  the  present 
American  staff  are  engaged  in  educational  work,  the  most 
important  educational  centre  being  the  Amanzimtote  semi- 
nary and  industrial  school,  which  was  established  in  1853 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Durban.  Towards  the  support  of 
the  mission's  educational  work  the  Natal  Government 
makes  a  grant  of  £7000  annually. 

The  total  number  of  baptized  converts  is  about  5500. 


328  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

In  1906,  as  the  result  of  a  careful  investigation  of 
the  records  of  the  Amanzimtote  seminary  and  industrial 
school,  it  was  shown  that  out  of  800  pupils  whose  record 
could  be  traced,  only  1 1  had  been  convicted  of  crime ; 
10  per  cent,  had  turned  out  badly,  20  per  cent,  were 
good  workmen  but  not  Christians,  while  70  per  cent, 
were  living  lives  which  were  a  credit  both  to  their  school 
and  to  their  religion. 

Members  of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions  have  produced  the  translation  of  the 
Bible  into  Zulu,  which  was  completed  in  1883,  and  is 
used  by  the  other  societies  working  amongst  the  Zulus. 

In  1894,  after  several  unsuccessful  attempts,  the 
Society  started  work  in  Eastern  Ehodesia  at  Mount  Silinda, 
and  at  Chikore,  near  the  Sabi  River.  It  has  also  a  little 
work  on  the  Eand  at  Johannesburg. 

Moravian  Missions. 

Eeference  has  already  been  made  to  the  first  attempts 
on  the  part  of  the  Moravians  to  start  missionary  work 
in  South  Africa  (see  p.  54).  In  1823  they  undertook 
to  minister  to  the  leper  settlement  near  Caledon,  and  in 
1846,  when  the  lepers  were  moved  to  Eobben  Island, 
a  Moravian  missionary  accompanied  them.  In  1826 
work  construction  was  started  at  Shiloh  amongst  Tembus 
and  Hottentots.  By  1840  the  Moravians  had  seven  stations 
with  a  membership  of  4500.  Since  then  their  work  in 
the  Cape  province  has  largely  developed.  In  South  Africa 
they  have  now  65  European  or  American  and  624  African 
workers,  23  mission  chief  stations,  7153  communicants 
and  21,133  baptized  Christians  (1914). 

Missions  of  the  Dutch  Reformed  Church. 

It  has  sometimes  been  asserted  that  the  Dutch  have 
been  the  greatest  opponents  of  Christian  missions  in  South 
Africa.     This  statement  has,  unfortunately,  a  measure  of 


AFRICA  (south)  329 

truth  in  it,  inasmuch  as  the  Dutch  opposed  and  interfered 
with  the  work  of  Dr.  Moffat  and  Dr.  Livingstone  and 
many  other  early  missionaries ;  but  it  is  by  no  means  true 
to-day  to  say  that  the  Dutch  take  no  interest  in  missions. 
In  the  charter  of  their  East  India  Company,  which  was 
formed  in  1602,  and  which  built  the  first  fortress  at  the 
Cape  in  1652,  there  was  a  clause  inculcating  the  duty  of 
instructing  the  children  of  the  "  natives,"  "  in  order  that 
the  Name  of  Christ  may  be  extended,"  and  during  the 
next  seventy-five  years  more  than  1100  children  and 
50  adult  slaves  were  baptized.  In  1799  was  formed 
"  The  South  African  Society  for  Promoting  the  Extension 
of  Christ's  Kingdom."  In  1861  this  Society  commenced 
a  "foreign"  mission  in  the  Transvaal  (with  the  aid  of 
a  Scotsman  named  M'Kidd  and  a  Swiss  named  Gonin), 
in  1888  they  began  w^ork  in  Nyasaland,  and  in  1891  in 
Mashonaland. 

The  Home  Mission  work  of  the  Dutch  Eeformed 
Church  in  the  Cape  province  is  carried  on  amongst  the 
coloured  population,  entirely  in  the  Dutch  language. 
There  are  at  present  sixty-seven  congregations,  with 
17,500  members,  while  during  the  year  1913  over  1200 
w^ere  confirmed. 

The  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Dutch  Church  may  be 
divided  into  two  classes — namely,  the  older  fields,  south 
of  the  Limpopo  Eiver,  started  about  fifty  years  ago,  and 
the  newer  fields,  north  of  this  boundary,  which  were 
entered  upon  about  twenty-five  years  ago. 

The  former  work  is  carried  on  in  what  are  now  the 
Zoutpansberg  and  Eustenberg  districts.  At  present  there 
are  in  connection  with  this  older  work  7  mission 
stations,  with  8  ordained  missionaries  (one  of  whom  is 
an  African),  and  78  outposts  under  African  evangelists. 
On  these  stations  and  out-stations  there  are  mission 
schools.  The  membership  is  now  over  5000,  and  300 
members  were  admitted  during  the  past  year. 

The  other  two  fields  of  mission  work  of  the  Dutch 
Church  lie  farther  north,  in  Mashonaland  and  Nyasaland. 


330  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  work  in  Mashonaland  is  carried  on  among  the 
Vakaranga  or  Banyai,  a  rather  degraded  race,  who  were 
the  slaves  of  the  Matabele,  and  very  much  oppressed  by 
them.  The  headquarters  of  this  mission  are  at  Morgen- 
ster,  three  miles  from  the  Zimbabwe  ruins  in  the 
Victoria  district.  The  Dutch  Church  has  there  8  chief 
stations,  20  outposts  and  35  mission  schools.  There 
are  28  European  workers,  of  whom  12  are  ordained 
missionaries.  The  total  membership  is  330,  and  the  com- 
municants are  about  the  same  in  number. 

The  largest  foreign  field  of  the  Dutch  Church  is  in 
Nyasaland,  in  a  district  lying  to  the  south-west  of  the 
lake,  between  the  Blantyre  Mission  of  the  Established 
Church  of  Scotland  and  the  Livingstonia  Mission  of  the 
United  Free  Church.  The  population  is  about  400,000, 
and  the  people  call  themselves  Achewa  or  Anyanja. 

To  the  west  of  this  field,  and  adjoining  it,  in  North- 
East  Ehodesia,  is  the  mission  sphere  of  the  Dutch  Church 
of  the  Orange  Free  State,  with  5  stations;  while  to  the 
south,  in  Portuguese  territory,  the  Transvaal  Dutch  Church 
has  started  work  at  3  stations. 

Altogether  in  these  three  sections  of  the  work  there 
are  16  chief  stations,  with  about  60  European  mission- 
aries, and  600  outposts,  under  charge  of  evangelists  and 
teachers  trained  at  an  institution  at  Myera,  the  present 
head  station. 

There  has  been  a  great  extension  in  this  work  during 
the  past  ten  years.  The  Church  counts  over  4000 
members,  while  about  7000  are  in  the  baptism  or  cate- 
chumen classes,  and  60,000  children  and  adults  are  under 
daily  instruction  in  the  mission  schools.  There  has  been  a 
great  spiritual  awakening  among  the  people ;  the  Chris- 
tians are  earnest  and  active,  about  one-fourth  of  them 
being  workers  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel.  The  income 
for  Foreign  Missions  in  1886  was  £1700,  and  in  1913 
had  risen  to  £25,000,  an  average  of  4s.  per  member. 


AFRICA   (south)  331 

Scandinavian  Missionary  Societies. 

In  1844  the  Norivegian  Missionary  Society,  which 
was  founded  by  members  of  the  Church  of  Norway  in 
1826,  sent  Hans  Schreuder  as  a  missionary  to  Zululand. 
After  a  preHminary  failure  and  a  visit  to  China  he  and 
thirty  others  started  a  mission  station  in  1850  at  Um- 
pumulo  on  the  borders  of  Zululand.  After  twenty-five 
years'  steady  work  the  number  of  Christians  was  245.  In 
1913  the  Society  had  12  chief  stations  in  Natal  and 
Zululand,  with  31  European  workers  and  3842  baptized 
Christians.  Schreuder,  its  first  missionary,  founded  in 
1872  an  independent  society  which  is  called  The  Church 
of  Norway  Mission,  of  which  Bishop  Nils  Astrup  is  the 
present  head.  There  were  5  European  and  3  African 
clergy  attached  to  it  in  1910. 

The  Church  of  Sweden  Mission. 

The  Lutheran  Church  of  Sweden  conducts  its  mis- 
sionary work  through  a  Board.  Its  fields  of  work  are 
in  India  and  South  Africa. 

Its  first  missionary  to  South  Africa  arrived  in  1876. 
Work  was  commenced  in  Natal,  its  chief  centre  being 
Dundee.  Other  centres  are  at  Appelsbosch  in  the  Um- 
voti  country,  Ekuhuleni  in  Zululand,  and  Johannesburg. 
It  has  also  commenced  a  mission  in  Southern  Ehodesia. 
The  mission  has  8  chief  stations,  13  ordained  European 
missionaries,  1  ordained  African,  and  3408  baptized 
converts  (1910). 

In  addition  to  the  three  Scandinavian  societies  men- 
tioned, there  are  several  other  small  societies,  e.g.  the  Mission 
of  the  Swedish  Holiness  Union,  the  Scandinavian  AlHance 
Mission,  the  Scandinavian  Independent  Baptist  Union. 

The  Finnish  Missionary  Society  sent  representatives  to 
Walfisch  Bay  in  South  Africa,  in  1869,  who  began  to 
work  in  Ovamboland.  In  the  Ondonga  district  their  work 
has    specially  prospered.     The  Society  has   37   European 


332  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

and    35    Africau    workers,    and    8    chief    stations.      The 
number  of  baptized  Christians  is  over   2000. 

Undenominational  Missions. 

The  South  Africa  General  Mission,  or  the  Cape  General 
Mission  as  it  was  first  called,  was  organized  in  1889  to 
work  amongst  both  the  white  and  the  coloured  populations. 
Its  missionary  work  is  in  Swaziland,  Kaffraria,  Tongaland, 
and  amongst  Indian  immigrants  in  Natal.  It  is  at  present 
only  a  pioneer  agency  and  has  no  form  of  Church 
government.  It  has  found  it  impossible  to  obtain  a  supply 
of  educated  or  trained  workers,  and  has  in  some  instances 
had  to  rely  upon  the  services  of  men  and  women  who 
were  ill- qualified  for  missionary  work  of  any  kind. 

The  Salvation  Army  started  work  amongst  Africans  in 
1890  near  Eshowe  in  Zululand.  It  has  organized  agri- 
cultural mission  centres  here,  at  King  William's  Town  and 
other  centres  in  Kaffraria,  in  the  Transkei,  on  the  Eand  at 
Johannesburg,  in  Matabeleland  and  Mashonaland.  The  work 
has  shown  considerable  advance  during  the  last  few  years. 

Eeference  ought  also  to  be  made  to  the  South  African 
Baptist  Missionary  Society  (1892)  and  the  missions  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  of  South  Africa  (1904). 

Roman  Catholic  Missions. 

Eeference  has  already  been  made  to  the  E.C.  missions 
in  East  Africa  in  the  sixteenth,  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
centuries.  In  1685  six  Jesuit  priests  paid  a  visit  to 
Capetown  on  their  way  to  Siam,  but  were  not  permitted 
by  the  Dutch  to  celebrate  Mass.  In  1805  two  priests 
obtained  the  permission  of  the  Dutch  authorities  to  settle 
at  the  Cape  in  order  to  minister  to  their  fellow-religionists, 
but  on  the  reconquest  of  the  Cape  by  the  English  they 
were  ordered  to  leave.  In  1820  a  E.C.  church  was 
built  and  a  priest  was  appointed.  It  was  not,  however, 
till  many  years  later  that  any  definitely  missionary  work 


AFRICA    (south)  333 

was  attempted.  The  missionary  work  which  is  now  being 
carried  on  is  so  closely  identified  with  the  work  amongst 
Europeans  that  it  is  difficult  to  ascertain  its  extent. 

In  the  eastern  and  western  vicariates  of  the  Cape  no 
missionary  work  had  been  attempted  before  1879.  In 
that  year  Bishop  Kicards  bought  a  tract  of  land  near 
Port  Elizabeth  and  stationed  on  it  thirty-one  brethren 
belonging  to  the  Trappist  Order,  but  in  1882  these 
abandoned  this  site  as  unfruitful  and  built  a  monastery  at 
Pinetown  in  Natal,  between  Durban  and  Maritzburg. 
Here  have  been  erected  a  fine  church,  a  hospital  and  an  in- 
dustrial school.  The  work  of  the  Trappists  has  developed, 
and  there  are  now  22  chief  centres  of  their  work  in 
Natal  and  East  Griqualand.  The  schools  under  their 
charge  exceed   100. 

In  Basutoland,  Dr.  Allard  established  a  mission  station 
in  1862  near  Thaba  Bosiu,  which  is  now  called  Roma. 
The  work,  which  is  carried  on  at  9  chief  stations,  is  super- 
intended by  25  priests  and  lay  brothers  (Oblates  of  Mary 
Immaculate).  There  are  51  European  and  African  nuns, 
and  the  African  adherents  number  11,000. 

The  Orange  Eiver  vicariate,  which  was  created  in  1898, 
includes  the  mission  station  of  Pella,  which  was  occupied 
in  1870  by  the  Fathers  of  the  African  Mission  of  Lyons, 
but  was  transferred  in  1882  to  the  Oblates  of  St.  Francis 
of  Sales.  In  the  Kimberley  and  Transvaal  vicariates  no 
missionary  work  is  at  present  being  carried  on. 

In  Damaraland  and  Great  Namaqualand  the  Oblates 
of  St.  Francis  of  Sales  occupy  13  stations,  but  the  converts 
only  number  about  200. 

In  Barotsiland  the  Jesuits  commenced  mission  work 
in  1879,  but  eventually  withdrew.  They  have  several 
stations  in  Matabeleland  and  Mashonaland,  their  most 
important  stations  being  at  Empandeni  (near  Plumtree) 
and  at  Chishwasha  (near  Salisbury).  They  have  also  a 
mission  at  Shupanga  on  the  Zambesi,  and  at  Chinkoni  in 
North-West  Rhodesia. 

In  German  South- West  Africa  3  priests  made  an  un- 


334 


HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 


successful  attempt  in  1878  to  start  work  amongst  the 
Omaruru.  In  1896  the  Oblates  of  Mary  Immaculate 
commenced  a  mission  among  the  Herero.  The  R.C. 
missions  in  South  Africa  which  minister  both  to  Europeans 
and  to  Africans  have  313  European  priests,  445  lay 
brothers,  1667  sisters,  258  stations  and  out-stations,  269 
churches  and  chapels,  and  58,548  adherents. 


General  Outlook. 

There  are  over  thirty  missionary  societies  now  at  work 
in  South  Africa,  and,  according  to  the  Government  census 
for  1911  (which  omits  Rhodesia,  Basutoland,  the 
Bechuanaland  Protectorate  and  Swaziland),  the  total 
number  of  African  Christians  is  1,053,706  ;  of  these  the 
Anglicans  number  170,704,  Wesleyans  396,797,  Lutherans 
113,125,  Congregationalists  74,637,  Dutch  Church  71,422, 
Presbyterians  68,211,  American  Methodist  Episcopalians 
53,100.  The  Cape  province  has  the  largest  number  of 
African  Christians,  472,304;  Transvaal  has  282,420; 
Orange  Free  State,  158,017;  and  Natal,  140,965.  The 
total  "  native "  population,  according  to  the  census,  is 
4,061,082;  in  British  territory  outside  the  Union  there 
are  1,367,483,  and  in  German  and  Portuguese  territory 
3,1 2 0,0 00, making  a  total  "native"  population  of  8,506,489. 

The  following  statistics  are  taken  from  the  Government 
census  of  1911  : — 


Total. 

European. 

Africans. 

Half-castes. 

Cape  of  Good  Hope 
Natal     . 
Transvaal 
Orange  Free  State . 

Total  . 

2,563,024 

1,191,958 

1,676,611 

526,906 

583,177 

98,582 
420,831 
175,435 

1,545,308 
951,808 

1,224,155 
339,811 

434,539 

141,568 

31,625 

11,660 

5,958,499 

1,278,025 

4,061,082 

619,392 

AFRICA   (south)  335 

The  population  of  the  Union  of  South  Africa,  which 
comprises  these  four  States,  increased  from  5,175,824  in 
1907  to  5,958,490  in  1911.  During  this  period  the 
European  population  increased  at  the  rate  of  14*4  per  cent, 
and  the  population  other  than  European  at  15*3  per  cent. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  relation  between  the  numbers 
of  Europeans  and  Africans  differs  greatly  in  different 
districts.  In  Cape  Colony  the  Africans  outnumber  the 
Europeans  by  nearly  4  to  1  ;  in  Basutoland  they  out- 
number them  by  380  to  1. 

The  experience  of  missionaries  in  all  parts  of  Africa 
has  been  that  where  they  have  been  enabled  to  carry  on 
their  work  apart  from  the  presence  of  European  traders 
or  settlers  they  have  seen  the  most  striking  results. 
Such  results  are  to  be  seen  to-day  in  Uganda,  K^-ffraria, 
Zululand,  and  several  other  districts.  Their  complaints 
that  the  kind  of  civilization  which  results  from  the  inter- 
course of  Africans  with  other  Europeans  is  frequently 
injurious  to  the  African,  is  borne  out  by  the  Keport  of  the 
Government  Commission  which  was  appointed  to  investi- 
gate the  condition  of  the  South  African  "  natives."  The 
Report  of  this  Commission  may  serve  as  an  answer  to  the 
suggestion  that  the  effect  which  Christian  missions  are 
producing  upon  the  African  races  is  of  doubtful  value.  The 
following  sentences  form  part  of  this  official  Eeport :  ^ — 

"For  the  moral  improvement  of  the  natives  there  is 
available  no  influence  equal  to  that  of  religious  belief.  The 
vague  superstitions  of  the  heathen  are  entirely  unconnected 
with  any  moral  ideas,  though  upon  sensuaHty,  dishonesty 
and  other  vices  there  have  always  been  certain  tribal 
restraints  which,  while  not  based  upon  abstract  morality, 
have  been  real,  and  so  far  as  they  go,  effective.  These 
removed,  civilization,  particularly  in  the  larger  towns,  brings 
the  native  under  the  influence  of  a  social  system  of  which 
he  too  often  sees  and  assimilates  the  worst  side  only. 

"The  Commission  considers  that  the  restraints  of  the 
law  furnish  no  adequate  check  upon  this  tendency  towards 

^  Eeport  of  the  South  African  Native  Affairs  Commission^  1903-5,  pre- 
sented to  both  Houses  of  Parliament  by  command  of  His  Majesty,  p.  40  f. 


336  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

demoralization,  and  that  no  merely  secular  system  of 
morality  that  might  be  applied  would  serve  to  raise  the 
natives'  ideals  of  conduct  or  to  counteract  the  evil  in- 
fluences which  have  been  alluded  to,  and  is  of  opinion  that 
hope  for  the  elevation  of  the  native  races  must  depend 
mainly  on  their  acceptance  of  Christian  faith  and  morals. 

"...  To  the  Churches  engaged  in  mission  work  must 
be  given  the  greater  measure  of  credit  for  placing  syste- 
matically before  the  natives  these  higher  standards  of 
belief  and  conduct.  It  is  true  that  the  conduct  of  many 
converts  to  Christianity  is  not  all  that  could  be  desired,  and 
that  the  native  Christian  does  not  appear  to  escape  at  once 
and  entirely  from  certain  besetting  sins  of  his  nature ;  but, 
nevertheless,  the  weight  of  evidence  is  in  favour  of  the 
improved  morality  of  the  Christian  section  of  the  population, 
and  to  the  effect  that  there  appears  to  be  in  the  native 
mind  no  inherent  incapacity  to  apprehend  the  truths  of 
Christian  teaching  or  to  adopt  Christian  morals  as  a 
standard." 

The  unequivocal  testimony  in  favour  of  Christian 
missions  contained  in  these  and  many  other  passages 
throughout  this  Eeport  is  of  special  interest  in  view  of  the 
opposition  to  missions  which  has  frequently  been  dis- 
played by  Europeans  in  South  Africa.  It  cannot  be 
denied  that  this  opposition  has  sometimes  had  a  measure 
of  justification.  The  education  supplied  in  some  mission 
schools  has  not  always  been  adapted  to  the  real  needs 
of  the  Africans,  and,  especially  in  cases  in  which 
Africans  have  received  only  a  smattering  of  the  educa- 
tion provided,  they  have  often  brought  disgrace  upon 
the  mission  with  which  they  have  been  connected. 
Taught  by  the  experience  of  the  past  the  missionaries  are, 
as  a  rule,  providing  an  education  which  is  likely  to  prove 
helpful  in  building  up  Christian  character. 

Colour  antipathy  is  a  factor  in  the  missionary  question 
in  South  Africa  to  a  greater  extent  than  it  is  in  any  other 
part  of  the  world.  In  many  parts  of  South  Africa  "  there 
is  an  absolute  and  almost  bitter  refusal  on  the  part  of 
white  Christians  to  mingle  in  any  kind  of  fellowship  with 
black  Christians.  ...    As  rec:jards  individual   natives,  no 


AFRICA    (south)  337 

amount  of  education  or  of  culture  or  of  that  impress  which 
the  sacred  ministry  bestows  avails  in  any  appreciable  degree 
to  break  through  this  attitude  of  reserve  and  aloofness.^  A 
native  may  have  passed  his  Cape  matriculation  and  wear 
clothes  ordered  from  a  London  tailor  and  speak  English 
faultlessly,  or  he  may  be  a  person  of  considerable  wealth, 
yet  there  are  very  few  houses  where  he  would  run  the  risk 
of  entering  by  the  front  door  or  sitting  down  to  tea  with 
the  hostess."  ^ 

Many  causes  combine  to  account  for  the  existence  of 
this  antipathy.  Its  existence  helps  to  explain  why  the 
most  successful  missionary  work  has  been  done  where  the 
Africans  have  not  come  into  contact  with  Europeans  other 
than  missionaries.  The  contempt  with  which  the  African 
has  too  often  been  treated  by  European  colonists  in  the 
past,  and  the  sensitiveness  and  self-assertion  which  are  in 
part  the  result  of  this  treatment,  greatly  complicate  the 
difficulties  that  lie  in  the  way  of  the  missionaries. 

In  South  Africa,  and  indeed  in  all  parts  of  Africa, 
industrial  missions  have  been  of  untold  use  in  training 
Africans  and  developing  their  characters  on  the  best  lines. 
The  Principal  of  the  largest  centre  of  industrial  training  in 
connection  with  Christian  missions  in  South  Africa  (at 
Lovedale)  was  able  to  show  that  out  of  2000  Africans  who 
had  been  trained  there,  80  per  cent,  could  be  proved  to 
have  led  industrious  and  useful  lives  after  leaving.  In 
Central  Africa,  and  in  a  lesser  degree  in  South  Africa,  the 
future  of  Christian  missions  is  bound  up  with  the  success- 
ful development  of  industrial  missions. 

In  South  Africa  the  missionary  problem  has  been  made 
more  difficult  of  solution  by  the  rise  of  a  movement  which 
was  more  political  than  religious  and  which  is  known  as 
the  Ethiopian  Movement.  This  Movement,  which  had  its 
origin  in  America,  represents  an  attempt  to  use  the  cry, 
Africa  for  the  Africans,  in  order  to  discredit  the  motives 
of    the  European  missionaries  and    to    found    a    national 

1  Cf.  article  on  "  Colour  Antipathies,"  by  E.  F.  Callawaj,  in  The  East 
and  The  irest,  January  1910,  p.  60. 


22 


338  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

church  in  South  Africa.  Needless  to  say,  it  has  made  no 
attempt  to  undertake  missionary  work  amongst  the  heathen. 
The  more  rehgious  section  of  the  Movement  under  its 
leader,  Dwan^,  is  now  a  part  of  the  Anglican  Church  and 
is  known  as  the  Ethiopian  Order.  It  does  not  appear 
likely,  however,  that  the  Ethiopian  Order  will  greatly 
increase,  or  that  the  time  has  yet  come  when  the  construc- 
tion of  a  national  church,  which  is  a  primary  object  of 
Christian  missions,  can  usefully  be  attempted. 

Portuguese  East  Africa. 

Portuguese  East  Africa  contains  301,000  square  miles 
and  a  population  of  about  3,120,000,  including  100,000 
Mohammedans,  3000  Hindus  and  about  20,000  Christians. 
Of  these  latter  4000  are  (African)  Roman  Catholics.  The 
E.C.  missions  are  in  the  ecclesiastical  district  of  Mozam- 
bique. 

Anglican  missions  are  represented  by  the  U.M.C.A.  at 
Unangu  and  by  the  S.P.G.  at  Louren^o  Marques,  which  is 
the  centre  of  the  diocese  of  Lebombo.  Protestant  missions 
are  represented  by  the  A.M.E.C.  and  the  Free  Methodists 
from  the  U.S.A.,  also  by  the  W.M.S.  and  the  Swiss 
Komande  Mission.     The  A.B.C.F.M.  has  a  station  at  Beira. 


Nyasaland. 

Nyasaland,  formerly  known  as  British  Central  Africa, 
lies  on  the  western  shores  of  Lake  Nyasa  and  in  the  Shir^ 
country  to  the  south  of  this  lake.  It  contains  an  area  of 
40,000  square  miles  and  a  population  of  about  1,000,000, 
of  whom  about  300,000  are  Mohammedans  and  about 
20,000  Christians.  The  U.M.C.A.  (see  p.  343)  works 
amongst  the  Yao  tribes  east  of  the  Shir^  Eiver,  south  of 
Lake  Nyasa,  on  Likoma  Island  and  at  several  stations 
on  the  east  shore  of  the  lake,  the  U.F.C.  of  Scotland  on  the 
west  shore  of  the  lake,  the  aS^.^.  Dutch  Reformed  Ministers' 
Union  in  the  Angoni  hills  west  of  the  lake,  the  Church  of 


AFRICA    (nYASALANd)  339 

Scotland  at  Blantvre  in  the  Shire  district,  and  the  Zambesi 
Industrial  Mission  west  and  north-west  of  Blantyre. 

The  Anglican  hisJiopric  of  Nyasaland,  formerly  called 
Likoma,  was  founded  in  1892,  though  work  had  been 
begun  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Nyasa  in  1881.  Bishop 
Maples,  who  became  bishop  in  1895,  was  drowned  in  the 
lake  the  same  year.  The  diocese  includes  territory  belong- 
ing to  Britain,  Germany  and  Portugal,  and  extends  along 
the  coast  for  300  miles.  The  centre  of  the  mission  is  the 
island  of  Likoma,  where  there  are  3000  baptized  Christians. 
A  chain  of  more  than  40  mission  stations  extends  from 
Amelia  Bay  in  German  territory  to  the  south  end  of  the 
lake.  On  the  west  side  of  the  lake  is  the  important 
station  of  Kota-Kota,  with  out-stations  extending  along  a 
coast-line  of  twenty  miles  north  and  south.  There  has 
recently  been  a  large  increase  of  work  in  the  Yao  hill 
country  and  amongst  the  Yao  and  Nyasa  tribes  along  the 
banks  of  the  Upper  Shire. 

The  Livingstonia  Mission  of  the  Scottish  Free  Church, 
which  was  organized  in  1875,  soon  after  the  death  of 
Livingstone,  extends  along  the  west  shore  of  Lake  Nyasa, 
the  centre  of  its  work  being  at  Bandawe.  It  has  also 
stations  in  South  Ngoni  Land,  which  lies  south  of  the  lake 
and  on  the  Tanganyika  plateau  to  the  north  of  the  lake. 

The  Livingstonia  Institution,  which  was  started  in 
1895,  is  situated  near  Florence  Bay,  six  miles  from  the 
lake  shore.  It  provides  industrial  training  on  the  lines 
of  Lovedale  in  South  Africa.  Its  first  leader  and  super- 
intendent was  Dr.  Laws.  This  mission,  which  received 
sympathy  and  help  from  the  African  Lakes  Corporation, 
has  exercised  a  wide  influence  in  behalf  of  religion  and 
civilization.  The  number  of  scholars  in  the  United  Free 
Church  schools  is  very  large. 

Mr.  Donald  Fraser,  who  is  a  member  of  this  mission, 
in  his  book  Winning  a  Primitive  People,  gave  an  encourag- 
ing account  of  the  check  which  Christian  missions  have 
offered  to  the  progress  of  Islam  in  the  Nyasa  district, 
and    specially  amongst   the    Ngoni,  Senga   and    Tembuka 


340  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

peoples.  Whilst  in  1894  there  were  no  African  Christians 
amongst  these  peoples,  within  twenty  years  the  number  of 
Christians  has  risen  to  20,000  and  the  number  of  places 
of  worship  to  250.  Eeferring  to  the  barrier  which 
Christian  missions  have  raised  to  the  progress  of  Islam, 
he  writes : 

"The  Arabs  were  pressing  down  from  three  or  four 
different  points,  and  the  wliole  of  the  lake  regions  were  in 
danger  of  becoming  a  great  Mohammedan  slaving  empire, 
threatening  disaster  to  the  defenceless  tribes,  and  menacing 
the  progress  of  civilization.  By  the  timely  occupation  of 
strategic  points  and  the  final  intervention  of  the  British 
Government  with  armed  forces,  these  perils  were  overcome. 
.  .  .  To-day,  Mohammedanism  is  scarcely  a  recognizable 
quantity  in  any  of  the  tribes  among  which  the  Livingstonia 
Mission  is  stationed,  while  Christianity  is  rapidly  becoming 
the  nominal  religion,  at  least,  of  the  people.  A  large 
educational  system  has  been  developed,  and  although  we 
have  only  eight  European  stations  there  are  787  schools 
and  52,000  pupils  under  our  supervision.  Thousands  of 
the  people  are  able  to  read  and  write. 

"  A  large  institute  at  Livingstonia,  under  Dr.  Laws,  is 
training  skilled  native  artizans,  teachers  and  preachers,  and 
these  people,  who,  a  generation  ago,  were  utterly  barbarous, 
to-day  send  forth  scores  of  builders,  carpenters,  printers, 
clerks,  and  intelligent  helpers  to  the  Europeans  who  are 
rapidly  raising  these  lands  into  commercial  prosperity."  ^ 

Other  important  centres  of  the  LT.F.C.  Mission  are 
Loudon  (11,530),  Bandawe  (7038)  and  Ekwendeni  (6614). 
The  numbers  in  brackets  represent  the  size  of  the 
Christian  community  in   1913. 


Blantyre  Mission. 

The  Blantyre  Mission,  founded  by  the  Established 
Church  of  Scotland  in  1876,  is  situated  on  the  Shire 
highlands  south  of  Lake  Nyasa,  within  the  British  Pro- 
tectorate, though  close  to  the  Portuguese  border.  Its 
church  is  one  of  the  most  striking  and  dignified  in  Central 
^  Winning  a  lYimitive  Pco^de,  p.  9, 


AFRICA    (RHODESIA)  341 

Africa.  The  mission  includes  a  large  amount  of  industrial 
work  a  hospital,  in  which  a  course  of  medical  training  is 
provided,  and  a  theological  seminary.  There  are  3  chief 
centres  and  13  schools  connected  with  the  mission 

The  reunion  of  the  Established  Church  and  the  Free 
Church  of  Scotland  would  naturally  be  followed  by  the 
amalgamation  of  the  two  Scotch  missions  which  have 
done  such  good  work  in  Nyasaland.  It  has  recently 
been  arranged  to  form  a  synod  of  the  two  Presbyteries  of 
Livmgstonia  and  Blantyre,  and  to  give  to  the  united 
body  the  title  of  ''The  Church  of  Central  Africa 
Presbyterian." 

Two  other  industrial  missions  have  been  attempted  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Blantyre,  the  Zambesi  Industrial 
Mission  and  a  Baptist  Industrial  Mission.  The  Z.I.M  has 
a  staff  of  32  European  workers,  8  mission  stations  and  70 
schools.  It  cultivates  coffee,  cotton  and  rubber,  and  teaches 
various  industries.  The  Christians  connected  with  it 
number  about  1000. 

The  Christians  in  Nyasaland  connected  with  the 
Protestant  missions  number  about  17,000,  and  those 
connected  with  Anglican  missions  about   8000. 

Northern  Rhodesia. 

The  Anglican  diocese  of  Northern  Rhodesia  was  founded 
m  1910  by  the  U.M.C.A  The  bishop  resides  for  the 
present  at  Livingstone,  Victoria  Falls.  Other  centres  of 
work  are  Mapanza  (where  work  has  been  begun  among  the 
Baila  and  Bataliga  tribes),  Fort  Jameson,  and  in  the 
district  south-west  of  Lake  Bangweolo.  The  work  is  still 
m  a  pioneer  stage,  the  total  number  of  baptized  Christians 
connected  with  the  U.M.C.A.  being  about  300. 

The  L.M.S.  began  work  near  the  southern  end  of  Lake 
Tanganyika  in  1877.  Its  chief  stations  are  at  Kawimbe 
Kambole,  Mbereshi  and  Mpolokoso. 

The  Dutch  Reformed  Church  has  a  strong  mission  near 
Fort  Jameson,  the  Paris  Missionary  Society  has  stations  at 


342  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

and  near  Livingstone.  The  A.M.E.C.,  the  Primitive 
Methodists,  the  American  Adventists  and  the  Brethren  have 
also  missions  in  Northern  Rhodesia.  There  is  also  a  small 
E.C.  mission  superintended  by  the  White  Fathers. 

The  Mohammedan  movement  coming  from  the  north 
has  not  yet  begun  to  exercise  much  influence. 

British  East  Africa  Protectorate. 

The  B.E.A.P.  includes  350,000  square  miles  and  a  popu- 
lation of  about  4,000,000,  of  whom  25,000  are  Asiatics. 
About  700,000  are  Mohammedans.  The  chief  missionary 
societies  at  work  are  the  C.M.S.,  the  Church  of  Scotland,  the 
JJ.F.C.M.,  the  Neukirchen  Mission  Institute,  the  Africa 
Inland  Mission,  the  Scandinavian  Alliance  of  the  U.S.A., 
and  the  American  Friends. 

The  Christians  connected  with  the  Anglican  and 
Protestant  missions  number  about  12,000.  The  Anglican 
diocese  of  Mombasa,  which  was  formed  in  1899,  includes 
nearly  all  British  East  Africa  and  German  East  Africa 
where  the  Anglican  Church  is  represented,  except  the  area 
in  which  the  U.M.C.A.  is  working.  The  founders  of  the 
Anglican  missions  in  British  East  Africa  were  Dr.  Krapf 
(1837-56)  and  John  Eebmann  (1846-76).  In  1875 
the  C.M.S.  undertook  to  superintend  a  colony  of  freed 
slaves  which  was  established  at  Frere  Town,  near  Mombasa. 
In  1883  work  was  begun  among  the  Wasagalla  tribe,  and 
later  on  work  was  undertaken  in  Ukaguru  and  Ugogo. 
Within  the  last  few  years  stations  have  been  established  at 
Nairobi  (1906),  Weithaga,  and  other  centres  in  the  Kenia 
province.  In  the  diocese  of  Mombasa  there  are  about 
5000  baptized  Christians  connected  with  the  Anglican 
missions  and  22  clergy.  There  are  also  3  medical 
missionaries,  who  are  stationed  at  Kahia  and  Embu  in  the 
Kenia  province. 

The  Church  of  Scotland  Mission  includes  among  its 
stations  Kikuyu  in  the  Kenia  province,  which  has  given  a 
name  to  a  recent  ecclesiastical  controversy.     A  medical, 


AFRICA  (Zanzibar)  343 

industrial  and  evangelistic  mission  has  been  established 
here  which  is  exercising  a  wide  influence  in  the  surround- 
ing districts.  Kikuyu  lies  on  the  Uganda  railway,  340 
miles  from  the  coast. 

The  missions  of  the  B.G,  Church  belong  to  the  Con- 
gregations of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  of  the  Sacred  Heart  of 
Mary.  British  East  Africa,  with  the  exception  of  a  small 
area  near  Mount  Kenia,  is  included  in  the  E.G.  diocese  of 
Zanzibar.  The  total  number  of  E.G.  Christians  in  the 
diocese  is  4050. 

Zanzibar  and  the  U.M.C.A. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  speech  delivered  by 
Dr.  Livingstone  in  the  Senate  House  at  Cambridge, 
December  4,  1857  (p.  318).  As  a  result  of  this  speech 
and  of  a  visit  to  Cambridge  by  the  Bishop  of  Capetown 
in  1858,  committees  were  formed  to  promote  a  Universities' 
Mission  to  Central  Africa.  Charles  Frederick  Mackenzie, 
who  had  been  2nd  Wrangler  and  a  tutor  of  Gains  College 
and  for  a  short  time  Archdeacon  of  Natal,  was  chosen  as  its 
leader.  He  sailed  for  Capetown  with  two  clergy  and 
three  laymen,  where  he  was  consecrated  as  bishop  on 
January  1,  1861.  By  the  advice  of  Livingstone  he 
settled  at  Magomero  near  the  river  Shir^ 

Livingstone  did  all  that  was  in  his  power  to  help 
forward  the  work  of  the  mission,  and  Bishop  Mackenzie 
wrote  most  gratefully  of  the  help  and  encouragement 
afforded  by  him.  Moreover,  the  fact  that  he  was  a 
Congregationalist  did  not  prevent  him  from  sharing  in  a 
common  act  of  worship  with  the  Anglican  missionaries. 
Thus  he  wrote  : 

"  Livingstone  and  his  party  came  to  our  ordinary  services. 
We  have  on  board  Morning  Prayer  and  sermon.  ...  On 
Whitsunday  I  proposed  having  the  Litany,  and  asked 
Livingstone  whether  he  thought  it  would  weary  the  sailors. 
He  said,  '  No ' ;  he  always  used  it  himself.  We  have  always 
had  it  since.     They  all  attend  Holy  Communion."  ^ 

*  History  of  the  Overseas  Missi&n,  p.  17. 


344  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Bishop  Mackenzie  died  on  January  31,  1862,  and 
two  of  his  companions  died  soon  afterwards.  Bishop 
Tozer,  who  succeeded  him,  moved  the  mission  to  the  island 
of  Zanzibar,  hoping  to  make  this  the  base  for  future  work 
on  the  mainland.  Bishop  Steere,  who  became  head  of  the 
mission  in  1874,  was  one  of  the  most  striking  and 
capable  missionary  bishops  whom  the  Anglican  Church  has 
possessed.  His  attitude  towards  the  problems  with  which 
he  was  confronted  may  be  gathered  from  his  words 
addressed  to  one  of  his  ordination  candidates.  "  Let  me 
give  you  one  word  of  advice.     Never  say,  '  I  can't.' " 

Under  his  guidance  the  mission  was  re-established  on 
the  mainland.  At  his  death  in  1882  the  mission  had 
3  stations  in  Zanzibar,  5  in  the  Usambara  country, 
3  in  the  Eovuma  country  and  8  in  Nyasaland.  Under 
Bishop  Smythies,  who  succeeded  him,  great  progress 
was  made,  and  in  1892  the  diocese  of  Likoma  (subse- 
quently called  Nyasaland)  was  formed.  In  1909  a  third 
diocese  of  Northern  Khodesia  was  constituted.  The 
mission  is  staffed  by  unmarried  men  and  women  who 
receive  no  stipends  beyond  an  allowance  of  £20  per  annum 
for  clothing  and  personal  necessities.  The  cathedral  at 
Zanzibar,  of  which  Bishop  Steere  was  the  architect,  is  built 
on  the  site  of  the  old  slave  market,  the  foundation-stone 
having  been  laid  on  Christmas  Day,  1873.  The  mission  in 
the  island  of  Zanzibar  has  had  to  face  special  difficulties, 
as  a  large  number  of  the  inhabitants  are  Moslems  and 
were  formerly  slave-raiders,  whilst  a  considerable  number 
of  those  for  whom  the  mission  has  endeavoured  to  care 
have  been  rescued  slaves.  Of  the  people  on  the  mainland 
amongst  whom  the  mission  works,  Bishop  Steere  wrote : 

"  The  East  Africans  are  not  idolaters ;  they  all  believe 
in  God,  but  they  think  of  Him  as  too  great  and  too  far-off 
to  care  individually  for  them.  Their  whole  thoughts  are 
full  of  evil  spirits  and  malicious  witchcraft.  A  man  gropes 
his  way  through  his  life,  peopling  the  darkness  round  him 
with  fearful  shapes,  and  on  the  continual  look-out  for  some 
omen,  or  for  some  man  wlio,  as  he  supposes,  knows  more 


AFRICA  (Zanzibar)  345 

than  he  does  of  the  invisible  world  to  give  him  some 
faltering  guidance.  His  life  is  dark,  his  death  is  darker 
still.  His  friends  dare  not  even  let  it  be  known  where  his 
body  is  laid,  lest  some  evil  use  should  be  made  of  it.  No  man 
in  the  whole  world  has  more  need  of  inward  strengthening 
and  comfort,  and  no  man  in  the  whole  world  has  less  of  it."  ^ 

Special  features  of  the  mission  are  the  Kiungani 
college  for  the  training  of  released  slaves  and  up-country 
boys,  hospitals  in  Zanzibar  and  on  the  mainland,  and  St. 
Mark's  College,  Zanzibar,  for  the  training  of  African 
candidates  for  ordination.  A  cathedral  has  been  built  on 
Likoma,  an  island  in  Lake  Nyasa,  and  work  is  carried  on  at 
a  large  number  of  stations  on  the  eastern  shore  of  the  lake 
(see  p.  339).  The  Mission  works  in  German  East  Africa, 
Portuguese  East  Africa  and  in  British  Central  Africa.  It 
has  also  a  station  in  Pemba  Island.  For  many  years  after 
the  mission  was  started  the  conditions  under  which  the 
missionaries  lived  were  so  unfavourable  to  health  that,  on 
the  average,  at  least  half  of  the  men  and  women  sent  out 
died,  or  were  invalided  home  within  a  year  of  their  arrival 
in  the  mission  field.  Owing  to  the  improvement  in  these 
conditions,  and  to  the  advance  in  medical  knowledge,  the 
loss  of  life  has  been  reduced  to  a  fraction  of  what  it  was 
during  the  earlier  years. 

Besides  the  island  of  Zanzibar  the  diocese  includes 
the  island  of  Pemba  and  the  Usambara,  Zigua  and  Ptovuma 
countries  on  the  mainland.  In  Pemba  the  work  is  chiefly 
amongst  released  slaves,  amongst  whom  the  Friends  have 
also  a  successful  mission. 

At  the  end  of  1913  the  number  of  baptized  Christians 
in  the  diocese  of  Zanzibar  was  about  9000  and  the 
number  of  adherents  about  20,000.  Of  the  39  clergy 
in  the  diocese  17  were  Africans.  In  the  three  dioceses 
supported  by  the  U.M.C.A.  there  are  71  clergy  of  whom 
24  are  Africans. 

There  is  no  English  or  American  society  other  than  the 
U.M.C.A.,  which  supports  work  in  the  island  of  Zanzibar. 

'  History  oj  the  Universities^  Missions,  by  MorsLead,  p.  109  f. 


346  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  small  B.C.  mission  is  under  the  charge  of  the 
Brothers  of  the  Congregation  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which 
works  both  in  the  island  of  Zanzibar  and  in  Pemba.  Con- 
nected with  this  mission  there  are  about  1400  Goanese 
Indian  Christians  and  about  500  Swahili-speaking  Africans. 
The  mission  is  in  charge  of  a  small  Government  leper 
asylum,  which  is  superintended  by  four  "  Sisters." 

German  East  Africa. 

The  population  of  what  was  German  East  Africa, 
previous  to  the  war,  which  was  bounded  by  British  East 
Africa  on  the  north  and  the  Portuguese  province  of  Mozam- 
bique on  the  south,  is  about  10,000,000.  According  to 
the  "Kolonial  Adressbuch  "  for  1912,  published  in  Berlin, 
the  white  population  at  the  beginning  of  1911  was  4227, 
of  whom  3113  were  Germans. 

Two  Anglican,  five  Protestant  and  three  Eoman 
Catholic  missions  are  at  work.  The  Universities'  Mission 
to  Central  Africa  carries  on  work  at  sixteen  principal 
stations,  most  of  which  are  within  150  miles  of  the  coast. 
The  Christians  number  about  5000. 

The  Church  Missionary  Society  has  eight  stations  in 
Usagara  and  Ugogo,  the  Christians  numbering  about  1200. 
The  newly-opened  railway  from  Dar-es-Salaam  to  Lake 
Tanganyika  passes  through  the  district  in  which  these 
stations  are  situated. 

The  Evangelical  Missionary  Society,  sometimes  called 
the  "  Bielefeld  Mission,"  has  twelve  central  stations  and  a 
large  number  of  out-stations.  Its  Christians  number 
about  1700. 

The  Berlin  Missionary  Society  carries  on  work  from 
three  chief  centres,  Usaramo,  Konde  and  Hehe,  and  has 
about  3000  Christians. 

The  Moravians  have  work  at  six  stations  in  Unyamwezi 
and  Nyasa.      The  Christians  number  about  1500. 

The  Evangelical  Lutheran  Mission  in  Leipzig  works  in 
four    districts    (Kilima    Njaro,     Meru,     Pare-gebirge    and 


AFRICA    (UGANDA)  347 

Iramba)  and  has  thirteen  principal  stations  and  about  2300 
Christians. 

The  three  B.C.  societies  working  in  German  East 
Africa  are — 

1.  The  Congregation  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  the 
Immaculate  Heart  of  Mary,  which  carries  on  work  at 
twenty-three  stations  in  Bagamoyo  and  Kilima  Njaro. 
The  Christians  number  about  10,000. 

2.  The  St.  Benedictine  Missionary  Association  carries 
on  work  at  fourteen  stations  near  Dar-es- Salaam.  The 
Christians  number  about  8000. 

3.  The  Missionary  Society  of  the  White  Fathers 
carries  on  work  in  the  vicariates  of  S.  Nyanza,  Unyanyembe 
and  Tanganyika.     The  Christians  number  about  30,000. 

Between  1908  and  1912  the  number  of  baptized 
Christians  connected  with  the  E.C.  missions  increased  from 
34,200  to  55,700.  During  the  same  period  the  baptized 
Christians  connected  with  the  Anglican  and  Protestant 
missions  increased  from  8500  to  13,500. 

Uganda. 

In  the  annals  of  missionary  enterprise  there  are  few, 
if  any,  stories  more  romantic  than  that  of  the  founding  of 
the  Uganda  Christian  Church.  On  April  5,  1875,  the 
traveller  Stanley  interviewed  Mtesa,  the  king  of  Uganda, 
who  had  made  a  profession  of  Islam.  A  few  weeks  later 
Stanley  wrote : 

"Since  the  5th  of  April  I  had  enjoyed  ten  interviews 
with  Mtesa,  and  during  all  I  had  taken  occasion  to  intro- 
duce topics  which  would  lead  up  to  the  subject  of  Christianity. 
Nothing  occurred  in  my  presence,  but  I  contrived  to  turn 
it  towards  effecting  that  which  had  become  an  object  with 
me,  namely,  his  conversion." 

A  little  later  Stanley  dispatched  a  letter  addressed  to  the 
Daily  Telegraph  which  led  to  the  sending  out  of  the  first 
Christian  missionaries.    In  the  course  of  the  letter  he  wrote  : 

"  I  have  indeed  undermined  Islamism  so  much  here  that 


348  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Mtesa  has  determined  henceforth,  until  he  is  better  in- 
formed, to  observe  the  Christian  Sabbath  as  well  as  the 
Mohammedan  Friday.  Oh  that  some  pious,  practical 
missionary  would  come  here!  What  a  field  and  harvest 
ripe  for  the  sickle  of  civilization.  .  .  .  Such  an  one  if  he 
can  be  found  would  become  the  saviour  of  Africa.  .  .  .  Here, 
gentlemen,  is  your  opportunity  ;  embrace  it !  The  people  on 
the  shores  of  the  Nyanza  call  upon  you.  Obey  your  own 
generous  instincts  and  listen  to  them;  and  I  assure  you 
that  in  one  year  you  will  have  more  converts  to  Christianity 
than  all  other  missionaries  united  can  number." 

This  letter  was  entrusted  by  Stanley  to  a  Belgian  named 
Bellefonds,  who  was  subsequently  murdered  by  members  of 
the  Bari  tribe.  His  skeleton  was  eventually  discovered,  on 
the  legs  of  which  had  been  left  the  high  boots  for  which  the 
Bari  had  no  use.  Stanley's  letter  was  found  inside  these  boots 
and  was  forwarded  to  General  Gordon,  who  was  at  Khartoum. 
On  November  15,  1875,  it  was  published  in  the  Daily 
Telegraph,  and  within  a  week  of  its  publication  the  Church 
Missionary  Society  had  resolved  to  send  a  mission  to 
Uganda.  Within  two  years  of  their  start  two  of  the  original 
party  of  eight  had  been  massacred,  two  had  died  of  disease 
and  two  had  been  invalided  home.  One  of  the  remaining 
two,  Alexander  Mackay,  an  engineer,  became  the  real 
founder  of  the  Uganda  Church.  Mtesa  at  first  received  the 
missionaries  in  a  friendly  way,  but  when,  two  years  later, 
some  French  K.C.  priests  arrived  and  assured  him  that 
the  religion  of  the  English  missionaries  was  false,  he 
vacillated  in  his  opinions  and  ended  by  relapsmg  into  his 
original  heathenism.  At  his  death  in  1884  there  were 
38  African  Christians.  On  January  30,  1885,  his  successor, 
Mwanga,  began  to  persecute  the  Christians  with  the  object 
of  exterminating  them.  A  Celtic  cross  marks  the  spot 
where  on  this  day  six  Waganda  Christians  were  martyred. 
Their  arms  were  cut  off,  and  after  they  had  been  tied 
to  a  rough  scaffolding  a  fire  was  kindled  beneath  them. 
While  they  were  being  slowly  burnt  to  death  their  murderers 
bade  them  pray  to  Jesus  Christ  to  save  them.  As  the  flames 
coiled  around  them  they  are  reported  to  have  sung  the  hymn 
beginning  with  the  words,  "  Daily,  daily,  sing  the  praises." 


AFRICA    (UGANDA)  349 

When  the  cross  which  stands  upon  tliis  spot  was 
erected  in  1910,  the  number  of  Christians  in  Uganda  had 
risen  to  70,000.  A  few  months  after  these  martyrdoms 
Mwanga  procured  the  murder  of  James  Hauningfcon,  who 
had  been  appointed  as  the  first  Bishop  of  Uganda  and  was 
approaching  Uganda  through  the  Masai  territory,  by  a 
route  which  had  not  previously  been  travelled  by  white 
men.  Soon  afterwards  the  king  seized  46  more  Christians 
and  ordered  them  to  be  burnt.  Mackay  continued  to 
support  the  Christians  by  his  prayers  and  exhortations, 
and,  despite  the  cruel  persecutions  to  which  they  were 
subjected,  their  number  continued  to  increase.  The  number 
of  adherents  of  the  C.M.S.  and  RC.  missions  who  were 
put  to  death  at  this  time  was  at  least  200,  and  many 
more  suffered  mutilation  or  banishment  on  account  of 
their  faith.  When  news  of  this  persecution  reached 
Tinnevelly,  Indian  Christians  collected  £80  and  sent  it  for 
the  relief  of  their  fellow- Christians. 

The  spirit  and  language  of  the  letter  which  Mackay 
addressed  to  the  Christians  of  Uganda  at  the  height  of  the 
persecution  bore  a  striking  resemblance  to  those  which 
characterized  the  letters  of  the  Bishops  or  other  Christian 
leaders  during  the  earliest  persecutions  to  which  the  Chris- 
tian Church  was  subjected.     In  the  course  of  it  he  wrote : 

"  We,  your  friends  and  teachers,  write  to  you  to  send  you 
words  of  cheer  and  comfort,  which  we  have  taken  from  the 
Epistle  of  Peter  the  apostle  of  Christ.  Our  beloved  brothers, 
do  not  deny  our  Lord  Jesus,  and  He  will  not  deny  you  in 
that  day  when  He  shall  come  in  glory.  Eemember  the 
words  of  our  Saviour,  how  He  told  His  disciples  not  to  fear 
men  who  are  able  only  to  kill  the  body.  ...  Do  not  cease 
to  pray  exceedingly,  and  to  pray  for  our  brethren  who  are 
in  affliction  and  for  those  who  do  not  know  God.  May 
God  give  you  His  spirit  and  His  blessings.  May  He  deliver 
you  out  of  all  your  afflictions.  May  He  give  you  entrance 
to  eternal  life,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord." 

Mackay  himself  died  on  February  8,  1890,  but  by 
this  time  the  religious  crisis  had  passed  and  it  had  become 
evident  that  the  spread  of  the  Christian  faith  in  Uganda 


350  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

could  not  be  checked  by  material  force.  Bishop 
Hannington  was  succeeded  by  Bishop  Parker,  who  had  been 
a  missionary  in  India.  He  was  consecrated  in  September 
1886  and  sailed  soon  afterwards  for  Africa,  but  died  in 
the  spring  of  1888  before  he  had  reached  Uganda.  A  few 
months  later  Mwanga,  having  plotted  unsuccessfully  to 
kill  all  the  Christian  and  Mohammedan  teachers  in  the 
country,  these  combined  against  him,  and  having  driven 
him  from  his  throne,  proclaimed  religious  liberty  for  all. 
On  October  12,  1888,  the  Mohammedans,  with  the 
assistance  of  some  Arab  slave-raiders,  gained  control  and 
placed  Kalema,  a  son  of  Mtesa,  on  the  throne,  about  a 
thousand  Christians,  together  with  all  the  Christian 
teachers,  having  been  driven  out  of  the  country.  In  1889, 
Mwanga,  aided  by  the  Christians  whom  he  had  driven  away, 
regained  his  throne. 

The  party  supporting  Mwanga  now  appealed  for  help 
to  the  Imperial  East  African  Company.  Their  repre- 
sentative. Captain  (now  General  Sir  Frederick)  Lugard, 
entered  Uganda,  but  the  Company  soon  found  that  the 
expense  of  maintaining  their  position  there  was  greater 
than  they  could  afford.  When  the  Company  announced 
its  intention  to  withdraw,  an  appeal  was  made  at  a  C.M.S. 
Meeting  in  Exeter  Hall  (October  30,  1891)  and  £8000 
was  guaranteed  on  the  spot,  the  sum  being  doubled  in  the 
course  of  a  few  days  and  handed  over  to  the  Company 
on  the  understanding  that  their  withdrawal  would  be 
postponed  for  a  year. 

In  January  1892  the  E.C.  section,  which  was  generally 
known  as  the  French  party,  made  an  unsuccessful  attack 
upon  the  converts  connected  with  the  English  mission,  and 
afterwards  carried  the  king  Mwanga  with  them  to  some 
islands  in  the  lake.  At  Captain  Lugard's  suggestion,  the 
province  of  Budu  was  then  assigned  as  a  sphere  of  work 
for  the  E.C.  mission,  and  this  arrangement  proved  satis- 
factory to  all  concerned. 

On  January  1,  1894,  an  English  protectorate  of  Uganda 
was  declared  by  Sir  Gerald  Portal,  who  had  been  sent  out 


AFRICA   (uGANDa)  351 

as  the  representative  of  the  British  Government.  During  the 
years  which  immediately  followed,  the  number  of  Christians 
steadily  increased  and  thousands  of  persons  placed  themselves 
under  instruction  in  order  that  they  might  learn  to  read 
the  Bible.  Mr.  G.  L.  Pilkington,  who  reached  Uganda  at 
the  end  of  1890,  was  largely  instrumental  in  translating 
the  Bible  into  Luganda  and  in  preparing  catechisms  and 
text-books  for  the  instruction  of  converts.  He  was  a  man 
"  full  of  the  Holy  Spirit "  and  exercised  a  marvellous  influence 
upon  the  Baganda.  He  was  killed  in  the  mutiny  of  the 
Sudanese  soldiers  on  December  11,  1897.  On  Trinity 
Sunday  1893,  six  Baganda  were  ordained  as  deacons  and 
the  foundation  of  an  African  self-supporting  Church  was 
laid.  In  1897  Mwanga  attempted  to  revolt,  and  appealed 
to  the  heathen  Baganda  to  aid  in  exterminating  the 
Christians.  As  a  result  he  was  banished  and  his  infant 
son  Daudi  was  proclaimed  king  in  his  place. 

When  Bishop  Tucker  arrived  in  Uganda  in  1890  the 
number  of  baptized  Christians  was  scarcely  200.  By  1913 
this  number  had  risen  to  90,000  and  the  Christian  ad- 
herents (including  the  RC.  converts)  were  little  short  of 
half  a  million.  It  would  be  impossible  to  find  a  parallel 
in  the  history  of  the  Christian  Church  during  the  last 
thousand  years  for  the  progress  in  the  establishment  and 
consolidation  of  a  Christian  Church  in  a  heathen  land  to 
that  which  has  been  attained  in  Uganda  in  twenty-three 
years.  The  present  Bishop  of  Uganda  (Dr.  Willis)  has 
stated  his  conviction  that  the  rapid  progress  must,  under 
God,  be  largely  attributed  to  the  fact  that  the  Church  in 
Uganda  has  been  to  a  greater  extent  than  almost  anywhere 
else  in  the  mission  field  a  united  Church. 

The  present  organization  of  the  Christian  Church  is 
thus  described  by  the  Bishop  : 

"Episcopacy  in  Uganda  is  not  an  autocracy;  it  is  the 
unifying  force  in  an  organization  scarcely  less  complex  and 
far  more  widely  extended  than  the  native  feudal  system. 

"The  Church  in  Uganda  is  self-governing,  and  its 
government  is  at  once  elastic,  capable  of  adapting  itself  to 


352  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

a  variety  of  local  conditions,  and  strong,  in  that  it  binds  the 
whole  Church  together  in  one  organization.  The  unit  of 
government  is  the  '  Parish,'  which  consists  of  a  central 
church,  with  six  or  eight  little  village  churches  which  are 
grouped  around  it.  This  'Parish'  has  its  own  parochial 
Church  Council,  composed  entirely  of  native  members. 
This  local  Council  conducts  all  the  business  of  the  *  Parish,' 
interviews  candidates  for  baptism,  inquires  into  cases  of 
discipline,  and  manages  parochial  finance.  Small  and  local 
as  it  is,  it  yet  has  executive  power  within  its  own  limited 
area  of  a  few  square  miles,  and  more  perhaps  than  anything 
else,  it  has  trained  the  native  Christians  to  regard  the 
Church  as  their  own,  and  its  welfare  and  progress  as  their 
own — and  not  a  European  responsibility. 

"  Similarly,  but  on  a  larger  scale,  there  is  the  District 
Church  Council,  representative  of  a  pastorate  or  missionary 
district,  into  which  a  number  of  '  Parishes '  are  grouped. 
This  has  similar  but  enlarged  powers,  and  among  them  the 
right  of  hearing  an  appeal  from  the  smaller  parochial 
Council.  An  English  missionary  or  a  native  clergyman 
presides  over  this  Council,  to  which  every  parochial  Council 
within  the  district  elects  its  representatives.  The  more 
important  questions,  concerning  the  district  as  a  whole,  are 
submitted  to  it,  and  local  catechists  are  sent  out  by  it  to 
take  charge  of  the  village  churches.  This  represents  the 
second  stage  in  the  development  of  native  self-government."  ^ 

The  final  stage  in  Church  government  is  reached  in 
the  synod,  composed  of  300  representatives,  which  meets 
annually  and  which  appoints  an  executive  of  30  mem- 
bers, which  is  called  the  Diocesan  Council.  The  Prime 
Minister  of  Uganda,  Sir  Apolo  Kagwa,  is  a  member  of  the 
synod. 

Whether  or  not  we  agree  with  the  Bishop  of  Uganda's 
suggestion  that  the  phenomenal  progress  of  Christianity  in 
Uganda  was  chiefly  due  to  the  fact  that  the  English 
missionaries  to  Uganda  were  members  of  a  united  Church, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  was  one  of  the  most 
important  factors  in  the  situation  and  one  which  is 
deserving  of  clear  recognition  by  the  student  of  Missions. 

^  "  A  United  Church  in  Uganda,"  by  the  Bishop  of  Uganda,  The  East 
and  The  West,  April  1914. 


AFRICA    (UGANDA)  353 

Had  the  Christian  Church  not  been  strong,  and  perhaps  we 
may  add,  had  it  not  been  united,  there  can  be  little  doubt 
that  a  large  proportion  of  those  who  are  Christians  would 
now  be  Moslems.  The  sudden  uprising  of  a  Christian 
Church  in  the  heart  of  Africa,  right  across  the  track  of 
Mohammedan  progress  southwards,  has  to  an  appreciable 
extent  served  to  stem  the  tide  of  the  advance  of  Islam. 

Although  there  has  been  good  reason  for  encourage- 
ment in  the  rapid  development  of  the  Christian  Church  of 
Uganda,  there  is  also  much  cause  for  anxiety  and  sorrow. 
One  of  the  missionaries  stationed  at  Mityana  wrote  a  few 
years  ago,  and  his  description  still  holds  good : 

"  We  are  constantly  hearing  of  the  sad  state  of  immorality 
and  indifference  prevalent.  For  months  past  I  do  not 
remember  a  single  Church  Council  meeting  here  without 
some  case  of  a  breach  of  the  seventh  commandment  being 
brought  forward.  Important  chiefs  to  whom  I  have  spoken 
tell  me  that  they  never  knew  such  widespread  immorality 
in  heathen  days,  as  the  punishment  was  too  severe.  Now 
there  is  practically  no  punishment,  and  we  have  to 
remember  that,  broadly  speaking,  the  people  are  still 
children  in  self-control,  yet  men  in  evil  with  generations 
of  heathenism  behind  them."  ^ 

Educational  work  has  formed  a  special  feature  of 
missionary  enterprise  in  Uganda.  The  mission  schools 
contain  about  50,000  boys  and  about  40,000  girls. 
Uganda  itself  forms  but  a  small  part  of  the  Uganda 
Protectorate,  which  includes  the  kingdoms  of  Toro, 
Bunyoro  and  Ankole,  and  other  districts  beyond.  The 
country  of  Busoga  had  a  resident  missionary  in  1891, 
Toro  was  occupied  in  1896,  Bunyoro  in  1899,  Kavirondo 
in  1900,  Ankole  in  1901,  the  Acholi  country  in  1904 
and  the  Teso  country  in  1908.  In  1897  a  separate 
bishopric  of  Mombasa  was  established.  The  missionary 
evangelistic  work  has  from  the  first  been  mainly  in  the 
hands  of  African  evangelists  superintended  by  European 
missionaries.     In  1913  the  staff  of  the  mission  consister^ 

1  The  Wonderful  Story  of  Uganda,  p.  186. 
23 


354  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

of  a  bishop,  33  European  clergy,  4  doctors,  61  women 
missionaries  (including  wives  of  missionaries),  35  African 
clergy  and  over  3000  African  agents.  In  1914  the 
number  of  persons  baptized  in  the  diocese  was  7899,  of 
whom  6042  were  adults. 

The  first  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  to  enter  Uganda 
were  sent  by  Cardinal  Lavigerie  and  arrived  on  February 
23,  1879.  It  was  most  unfortunate  that  they  were 
natives  of  France,  the  Government  of  which  was  at  that 
time  eager  to  extend  its  iufluence  in  Central  Africa,  as  their 
national  aspirations  greatly  increased  the  strength  of  their 
opposition  to  those  whom  on  religious  grounds  they  were 
bound  to  oppose.  When  at  length  the  British  Government 
established  a  protectorate  over  Uganda,  it  succeeded  in 
arranging  with  the  authorities  of  the  Eoman  Church  that 
English  missionaries  belonging  to  the  Eoman  Church  should 
be  substituted  for  French  missionaries.  On  Easter  Day, 
1880,  two  E.C.  catechumens  were  baptized.  During  the 
great  persecution  which  occurred  in  1886,  30  newly  bap- 
tized E.C.  converts  were  burnt  to  death  on  May  26th,  and 
70  others  were  afterwards  murdered.  The  first  E.C.  bishop 
to  reach  Uganda  was  Mgr.  Hanlon,  who  arrived  in  1895. 
In  1914  two  natives  of  Uganda  were  ordained  as  priests. 

It  is  difficult  to  form  an  impartial  opinion  in  regard 
to  the  relative  condition  of  the  Anglican  and  Eoman 
converts,  who  are  about  equal  in  number.  One  significant 
fact  must  be  recorded.  When  in  March  1893  forty 
Protestant  chiefs  voluntarily  drew  up  and  signed  a  petition 
asking  Sir  Gerald  Portal  to  abolish  slavery  and  to  set 
free  all  slaves  in  Uganda,  he  was  for  some  time  unable 
to  accede  to  the  request  owing  to  the  opposition  of  the 
E.C.  chiefs. 

Three  E.C.  missions  are  at  work  in  different  parts  of 
the  Uganda  Protectorate.  The  eastern  portion,  that  is 
Uganda  proper,  is  occupied  by  the  English  mission  from 
Mill  Hill,  the  western  by  the  White  Fathers  from  Algeria, 
and  the  northern  by  the  Austrian  mission.  The  complete 
geographical     separation     of    the    Anglican    and    Eoman 


AFRICA    (uGANDa)  355 

missions  was  productive  of  satisfactory  results,  but  owing 
to  the  inevitable  intermingling  of  the  Christians  the 
arrangement  has  now  ceased  to  be  operative. 

In  a  charge  delivered  to  the  missionaries  in  Uganda  in 
1913,  the  Anglican  Bishop  of  Uganda  sums  up  in  a  few 
sentences  the  moral  outlook.     He  says : 

"  There  is  something  most  pathetic  in  the  rushing  of  a 
quick,  impressionable,  intelligent  people  through  all  the 
stages  of  civilization  within  the  lifetime  of  a  single  genera- 
tion. That  momentous  decision  to  build  a  railway  into  the 
heart  of  this  continent  has  been  followed  with  startling 
rapidity  by  consequences,  logical,  inevitable,  necessary,  but 
none  the  less  pathetic.  Within  thirty  years  the  whole 
fabric  of  this  country,  social  and  political,  has  been  up- 
heaved ;  perhaps  never  in  any  country  has  there  been  seen 
a  more  sudden  and  more  complete  reversal  of  the  whole 
national  life  within  so  short  a  time.  No  people,  and 
certainly  no  African  people,  could  stand  the  shock  of  such 
an  upheaval  without  serious  loss." 

Eeferring  to  the  moral  condition  of  the  Christians  of 
Uganda,  the  Bishop  says : 

"  Apart  from  the  matter  of  the  return  to  pagan  habits  of 
thought  and  action  there  are  two  dominant  evils  in  the 
field,  drunkenness  and  immorality.  These  are  not  new  in 
the  country  or  in  the  Church.  But  of  late,  within  the  last 
six  years,  there  has  been  a  recrudescence  on  an  alarming 
scale  .  .  .  there  seems  no  reason  to  question  the  statement, 
all  but  universally  made,  that  a  very  large  number  of  the 
Christians,  at  one  time  or  another,  fall  under  the  power  of 
one  or  other  of  those  two  evils.  .  .  .  The  passing  from  a 
nominal  paganism  to  a  nominal  Christianity  will  not  at 
once  produce  morality,  and  we  must  not  assume  that  the 
establishment  of  Christianity  will,  of  itself,  necessarily 
regenerate  a  country."  ^ 

The  reports  received  relating  to  the  moral  condition  of 
the  Eoman  Catholic  Christians  suggest  that  the  condition 

^  A  Charge  to  Missionaries  of  the  Uganda  Mission,  by  the  Bishop  of 
Uganda.     Published  by  Longmans,  1914. 


356  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

of  these  is  not  better,  if  indeed  it  is  not  actually  worse, 
than  that  of  the  other  Christians. 

Despite,  however,  the  prevalence  of  the  serious  evils  to 
which  the  Bishop  refers,  there  is  solid  ground  for  hope 
that  the  Church  in  Uganda  which  has  had  so  bright  a 
beginning  may  yet  be  purified  and  strengthened  and  act  as 
the  great  missionary  Church  of  Central  Africa. 

Italian  Somaliland. 

In  Italian  Somaliland,  which  contains  about  250,000 
Mohammedans  and  about  50,000  pagans,  there  are 
apparently  no  Christian  missions. 

British  Somaliland. 

In  British  Somaliland,  which  has  an  area  of  about 
68,000  square  miles,  the  population  is  about  500,000,  all 
of  whom  are  Mohammedans. 

Eritrea. 

Eritrea, an  Italian  colony  on  the  Ked  Sea, has  a  population 
of  about  500,000.  Of  these  100,000  are  Mohammedans 
and  320,000  are  pagans.  There  are  2000  Europeans. 
Of  the  Christians  17,000  are  Roman  Catholics,  12,000 
belong  to  Eastern  churches  and  1000  are  Protestants. 
There  are  53  KG.  priests  (Franciscans).  The  Swedish 
National  Society  has  34  missionaries,  10  mission  stations 
and  about  600  Christians. 


Abyssinia. 

Abyssinia  was  converted  to  the  Christian  faith  in  the 
fourth  century,  its  first  bishop  being  Frumentius,  who  was 
consecrated  by  Athanasius.  An  Ethiopic  translation  of 
the  Bible  was  apparently  begun  by  Frumentius  and  com- 
pleted a  little  later.     An  Ethiopic  king,  at  the  instigation 


AFRICA   ( ABYSSINIA)  357 

of    Justinian,    conquered    part   of    Southern    Arabia    and 
placed  a  Christian  king  on  the  throne.     At  the  end  of  the 
fifteenth  century  Jesuit  missionaries,  supported  by  Portu- 
guese soldiers,  attempted  to  win  over  the  Abyssinians  to 
obedience  to  Eome,  but  after  much  fighting  they  withdrew 
Another  attempt  was  made  in  1621  and  a  third  in  1750 
but  without   any    permanent    result.     In    1830,  Samuel 
Gobat  (afterwards  Bishop  in  Jerusalem)  and  Mr  Kucrler 
were  sent  by  the  CJLS.  to  Abyssinia,  but  Mr.  Kugler  died 
and  Mr.  Gobat  retired  through  ilKhealth.     About  this  time 
the  Jesuits  made  a  further  attempt  to  work  amongst  the 
Abyssinians,  but    in   1859    they  were  expelled  by  King 
Theodore.     In  1860  Dr.  Stern  arrived  as  a  representative 
of  the  London  Jews'  Society.     The  king's  suspicions  having 
been  excited  against  Dr.  Stern  and  other  Europeans  who 
had  been   sent   by  Bishop    Gobat,   he   detained   them  as 
prisoners.      On    his    refusal    to    release    them    war    with 
England  followed  in  1868.     Abyssinian  Christianity  is  a 
strange   mixture    of    Christianity,  Judaism    and    Moham- 
medanism, and  it  is  hard  to  imagine  how  it  can  be  re- 
formed  from   within.      It   is   calculated   that   1800   Jews 
have  been  baptized   in  Abyssinia   since  Dr.  Stern   beaan 
his  work.  ° 

Of  the  3,000,000  nominal  Christians  7000  belong 
to  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  and  all  the  rest  are 
naembers  of  a  branch  of  the  Coptic  Church.  The  popula- 
tion of  the  country  includes  50,000  Mohammedans, 
60,000  Jews  and  300,000  pagans.  The  B.C.  mission, 
supported  by  the  Lazarists  of  Paris,  has  12  European 
and  18  native  priests.  The  Swedish  National  Missionary 
Society,  which  has  a  mission  in  Eritrea,  supports  native 
evangelists   amongst  the  Gallan. 


358  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 


Madagascar. 

Of  the  Christian  missions  established  during  the  nine- 
teenth century  none  have  been  subjected  to  so  long  and 
severe  a  persecution  as  that  which  befel  the  mission  which 
the  London  Missionary  Society  was  instrumental  in  starting 
in  Madagascar.  A  larger  number  of  Christians  were  killed 
during  the  Boxer  revolution  in  China,  but  in  this  case  the 
trial  was  brief  and  none  of  the  Christians  were  subjected 
to  the  long-protracted  torments  which  the  Malagasy 
Christians  endured.  Their  sufferings  were  worthy  to  be 
compared  with  those  of  the  Japanese  Christians  in  the 
sixteenth  and  those  of  the  Corean  Christians  in  the 
eighteenth  and  nineteenth  centuries. 

When  the  first  L.M.S.  missionaries  landed  in  1818  the 
king,  Eadama,  was  well  disposed  to  Europeans  and  desirous 
of  encouraging  the  education  of  his  subjects.  Actual 
missionary  work  was  begun  by  Mr.  David  Jones  in  1820, 
and  by  1828  32  schools  had  been  opened  containing 
4000  scholars.  Eadama,  who  died  in  this  year,  was 
succeeded  by  Queen  Eanavalona,  one  of  the  twelve  wives 
of  Eadama.  She  forbade  all  teaching  and  learning  and  dis- 
couraged the  spread  of  the  Christian  faith.  In  May  1831 
28  converts  were  baptized,  who  formed  the  nucleus  of  a 
Malagasy  Church.  In  1835  the  queen  began  an  active 
persecution,  and  in  1839  she  "  issued  an  order  that  the 
soldiers  should  seize  every  Christian  they  could  find,  and 
without  trial,  bind  them  hand  and  foot,  dig  a  pit  on  the 
spot,  and  then  pour  boiling  water  upon  them  and  bury 
them."  1 

After  a  temporary  lull  the  persecutions  broke  out 
again  in  renewed  force  in  1849,  when  18  persons  were 
sentenced  to  death  and  over  2000  were  condemned  to 
slavery,  public  floggings  and  other  degradations,  and  four 
nobles  were  burned  alive.  A  spectator  of  their  martyrdom 
wrote  :  "  They  prayed  as  long  as  they  had  life.      Then  they 

1  The  Story  of  the  L.M.S.,  p.  197. 


AFRICA    (MADAGASCAR)  359 

died,  but  softly,  gently.  Indeed,  gentle  was  the  going 
forth  of  their  life,  and  astonished  were  all  the  people  around 
that  beheld  the  burning  of  them." 

Meanwhile  the  missionaries  had  retired  to  Mauritius, 
as  their  presence  served  only  to  increase  the  fury  of  the 
persecutors.  Though  the  mission  stations  were  closed  for 
twenty-six  years,  the  number  of  the  Christians  tended  steadily 
to  increase.  On  the  death  of  the  queen  in  1861  liberty 
of  conscience  was  proclaimed  by  her  successor.  Of  the 
scenes  which  were  then  enacted  Mr.  Silvester  Home  wrote  : 

"Men  and  women  were  brought  out  of  the  land  of  exile 
who  had  been  banished  for  many  years.  There  were  re- 
unions of  those  who  had  supposed  each  other  to  be  dead 
long  since.  Out  of  the  recesses  of  the  forests  there  came 
men  and  women  who  had  been  wanderers  and  outcasts  for 
years.  They  reappeared  as  if  risen  from  the  dead.  Some 
bore  the  deep  scars  of  chains  and  fetters;  some,  worn 
almost  to  skeletons  by  prolonged  sufferings  from  hunger  or 
fever,  could  scarcely  drag  themselves  along  the  roads  that 
led  to  the  capital.  Their  brethren  from  the  city  went  out 
to  meet  them,  and  to  help  them,  and  ...  as  they  saw 
their  old  loved  city  again,  they  sang  the  pilgrim  song, 
'When  the  Lord  turned  again  the  captivity  of  Zion  we 
were  like  them  that  dream.  .  .  .' "  ^ 

In  1836,  when  the  persecution  of  the  Christians  began, 
the  number  of  Christians  in  Madagascar  was  estimated  at  from 
1000  to  2000.  During  the  twenty-six  years  of  persecution 
it  is  reckoned  that  over  10,000  persons  were  sentenced  to 
various  punishments  as  Christians,  and  that  200  were  put 
to  death.  Nevertheless,  at  the  end  of  this  period  the 
Christians  were  four  times  as  numerous  as  they  were  when 
the  persecution  began.  Although  the  Christians  were 
deprived  of  the  help  of  their  European  teachers,  they  had 
the  New  Testament  in  their  hands  and  large  numbers  of 
them  had  learned  to  read  it.  To  this  fact  must  to  a  great 
extent  be  attributed  the  continuance  and  extension  of  th« 
Church  during  these  years.      Queen  Eanavalona  ii.  and  her 

^  The  story  of  the  L.M.S.,  p.  353  f. 


360  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Prime  Minister  were  publicly  baptized  by  a  Malagasy 
preacher  in  1868,  and,  Christianity  having  now  become 
popular,  the  Christians  rapidly  increased  in  number.  In 
1869  they  were  reckoned  at  37,000  and  in  the  following 
year  at  250,000.  Many  of  these  were  Christians  only 
in  name,  and  their  new  religion  made  little  perceptible 
difference  in  their  lives.  In  1883  the  French  bombarded 
Tamatave  and  soon  afterwards  declared  a  French  pro- 
tectorate over  the  whole  island.  One  result  of  the  French 
conquest  was  that  a  large  number  of  those  who  were 
merely  nominal  Christians  and  who  had  become  such 
because  the  profession  of  Christianity  had  become  popular, 
ceased  to  call  themselves  Christians.  Thus  in  1904  the 
250,000  adherents  connected  with  the  L.M.S.  had  sunk  to 
48,000. 

The  anti-Christian  policy  of  the  French  Governor- 
General,  M.  Augagneur,  who  was  appointed  in  1906, 
resulted  in  the  closing  of  four-fifths  of  all  the  mission 
schools  in  the  island.  The  L.M.S.,  which  in  1888  had 
90,000  scholars  in  its  schools,  in  1910  had  less  than 
5000.  The  decree,  which  was  issued  in  Paris  in  March 
1913,  dealing  with  the  regulation  of  Public  Worship  has 
removed  some  of  the  obstacles  which  had  been  placed  by 
the  local  authorities  in  the  way  of  the  spread  of  Christianity, 
but  missionary  work  is  still  carried  on  under  exceptional 
difficulties. 

In  1862  the  S.P.G.,  after  it  "had  ascertained  that  the 
L.M.S.  would  gladly  see  it  taking  part  in  the  work  of 
evangelizing  the  Malagasy,"^  requested  the  Bishop  of 
Mauritius  to  visit  Madagascar  with  a  view  to  establishing 
a  mission.  In  1864  work  was  started  at  Tamatave.  In 
the  same  year  the  G.M.S.  started  a  mission  at  Vohimare 
in  the  north  of  the  island,  but  in  1874  this  Society  with- 
drew its  workers  from  Madagascar. 

Within  a  year  of  their  arrival  the  S.P.G.  missionaries 
were  able  to  baptize  81  persons,  and  in  1866,  in  response 
to  an    invitation  from  the  king,  they  opened    a    mission 

1  Two  Hundred  Years  of  the  S.P.G. ^  p.  374. 


AFRICA   (MADAGASCAR)  361 

station  at  the  capital,  Antananarivo  (Tananarive).  In  1 8 74 
the  Eev.  E.  K.  Kestell  Cornish  was  consecrated  at  Edinburgh 
as  the  first  Bishop  in  Madagascar. 

The  first  woman  to  be  sent  out  by  the  S.P.G.  as  a  mis- 
sionary was  Miss  Emily  Lawrence,  who  was  sent  in  1867 
to  Mauritius  and  in  1874  to  Madagascar,  where  she  worked 
indefatigably  for  over  twenty  years.  Three  years  after  her 
arrival  at  Tananarive  43  girls  were  baptized  and  10  con- 
firmed from  her  own  school. 

In  1891  the  Eev.  E.  0.  (afterwards  Archdeacon) 
McMahon  undertook  the  perilous  task  of  starting  a  mission 
amongst  the  Sakalava  in  the  west  of  Madagascar.  Thouc^h 
the  mission  had  to  be  abandoned  for  a  time,  it  has  been 
successfully  restarted. 

Bishop  King  reached  Madagascar  in  1899,  and  since 
then  the  good  work  which  had  been  accomplished  by  Bishop 
Cornish  has  steadily  developed.  After  the  annexation 
of  the  island  the  French  Government  insisted  on  French 
being  taught  in  all  mission  schools,  and  by  other  regula- 
tions which  they  made  seriously  interfered  with  the  work 
of  all  the  Christian  missions  in  the  island.  As  the  result 
of  remonstrances  addressed  direct  to  the  Government  in 
Paris  these  regulations  were  modified  in  1913,  but  the 
development  of  all  branches  of  missionary  work  is  still 
restricted  and  liable  to  be  interfered  with  by  the  French 
officials  in  Madagascar. 

Archdeacon  McMahon,  who  has  been  a  missionary  in 
Madagascar  for  over  thirty  years,  writing  of  the  times 
which  followed  the  periods  of  persecution,  says : 

"  The  want  of  catechists  and  evangelists  made  it  practi- 
cally impossible  to  cope  with  the  new  state  of  things,  and 
instead  of  being  an  advantage  the  numbers  which  professed 
to  be  Christians  at  this  time  were  a  decided  drawback  and 
set  a  low  standard  from  which  the  Malagasy  have  not  yet 
recovered,  .  .  .  the  slackness  in  morality,  honesty  and 
truthfulness  which  troubles  us  now,  is  in  a  large  degree 
owing  to  the  looseness  which  resulted  in  the  flooding  of  the 
churches  by  half-converted  heathens  at  this  time.  The 
form  of  Christianity  which  they  understood  was  too  easy- 


362  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

going,  and  there  was  a  great  lack  of  definite  teaching.  1 
think  that  there  are  signs  of  improvement  .  .  .  since  the 
profession  of  Christianity  brings  no  advantage  to  anyone, 
rather  the  reverse.  ...  It  takes  generations  to  make  a  race 
Christian,  and  the  Malagasy  have  their  strong  as  well  as 
their  weak  traits ;  for  instance,  they  could  give  us  points  in 
patience,  long-suffering,  humility  and  like  virtues."  ^ 

The  B.C.  Mission.  —  French  priests  accompanied  a 
French  Government  expedition  to  Madagascar  in  the 
seventeenth  century  and  again  in  1845,  but  it  was 
not  till  1861  that  a  French  E.C.  mission  was  established 
in  Tamatave  and  in  the  capital.  The  mission  was  for  a 
time  encouraged  and  subsidized  by  the  French  Government, 
but  in  recent  years  it  has  been  subjected  to  restrictions 
similar  to  those  imposed  upon  the  other  missionary 
societies.  The  missionaries  include  Jesuits,  Lazarists  and 
Brothers  of  the  Congregation  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  There 
are  139  European  and  2  Malagasy  priests,  and  about 
200,000  baptized  Christians. 

The  Norwegian  Lutheran  Mission  sent  its  first  mission- 
aries in  1866,  who  began  work  amongst  the  Betsileo  tribe. 
With  the  two  affiliated  American  societies  this  mission  has 
worked  amongst  the  Bara,  Sakalava  and  other  tribes  in  the 
south,  south-east  and  south-west.  In  1913  it  had  784 
churches  and  83,727  baptized  members,  5201  of  whom 
had  been  baptized  during  the  previous  year.  Before  the 
French  authorities  stopped  its  schools  they  numbered  885  ; 
these  are  now  reduced  to  84.  The  mission  has  96  native 
pastors  and  over  900  catechists.  It  includes  two  medical 
missions,  and  a  leper  asylum  at  Antsirabe.  The  work  of  the 
mission  is  well  organized  and  thorough. 

The  Friends  Foreign  Mission  Association  began  work 
in  1867  and  has  co-operated  with  the  L.M.S.  at  Imerina. 
It  has  now  started  work  on  the  west  coast. 

After  the  French  occupation  of  Madagascar  representa- 
tives of  the  Paris  Missionary  Society  arrived  in  1896  to 
help  the  other  Protestant  missions  and  to  take  over  part 

^  Christian  Missio)cs  in  Madagascar,  by  E.  O.  McMahon  (1915),  pp.  74  f. 


AFRICA  (Madagascar)  363 

of  the  work  of  the  L.M.S.  The  help  which  their  mission- 
aries have  afforded  to  the  other  missions  has  been  specially 
welcome  in  view  of  the  Government's  requirement  that 
all  scholars  in  the  mission  schools  should  be  taught 
French.  The  French  missionaries  have  helped  to  get  the 
Malagasy  scholars  through  their  brevet  examination  and 
so  to  keep  open  a  few  of  the  mission  schools.  Two  of  the 
French  missionaries  were  assassinated  by  a  band  of  rebels 
in  1897.  The  Paris  Society  has  undertaken  as  its  special 
sphere  of  work  the  coast  from  Tamatave  to  Diego  Suarez. 

The  total  number  of  baptized  Christians  connected 
with  the  Anglican  and  Protestant  missions  is  about 
130,000  and  of  Christian  adherents  about  250,000.  Of 
the  former,  29,800  belong  to  the  L.M.S.  and  14,200  to  the 
Anglican  Mission. 

Malagasy  missionary  societies. — Several  attempts  have 
been  made  by  Malagasy  congregations  to  send  out 
evangelists  to  preach  to  the  non- Christian  populations  in 
their  districts.  No  difficulty  has  been  experienced  in 
raising  money  for  their  support,  but  up  to  the  present  the 
results  have  not  been  encouragincr. 

The  Malagasy  version  of  the  Bible,  which  was  issued 
in  a  revised  form  in  1887,  has  done  much  to  create  a 
standard  of  the  written  language. 

Mohammedan  traders  and  others  have  effected  a  con- 
siderable number  of  conversions  to  Islam  in  the  east  of 
the  island,  and  the  Moslems  number  about  75,000. 
Islam  is  making  rapid  progress  amongst  the  Sakalava  race. 
Nearly  all  the  population  on  the  coast  from  Soalala  to 
Mojanja  is  already  Mohammedan.  Many  Indian  Moslems 
have  settled  in  the  country. 

In  answer  to  the  question  "  Has  Christianity  made 
progress  in  Madagascar  during  the  last  twenty  years,  that 
is  since  the  country  has  been  under  European  rule  ? " 
Archdeacon  McMahon  writes : 

"  It  is  very  difficult  to  say,  but  I  think  that  there  is  not 
much  doubt  that  the  good  Christians  have  become  better, 
while  there  has  been  a  falling  off  of  the  nominal  Christians, 


364  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

as  was  to  be  expected.  In  the  towns  the  churches  are 
generally  well  attended,  and  there  is  as  much  interest  taken 
in  all  that  has  to  do  with  religion  as  was  the  case  formerly. 
In  the  country  there  has  been  a  falling  off  in  the  numbers 
found  in  Church  on  Sundays:  this  is  largely  due  to  the 
difficulty  in  finding  catechists.  ...  On  the  whole  I  think 
one  may  say  that  the  Christian  religion  has  taken  deeper 
and  firmer  root  in  the  hearts  and  minds  of  the  Christians 
in  Madagascar,  but  the  difficulties  during  the  last  few  years 
show  how  much  there  is  yet  to  be  done,  even  more  than 
those  who  know  the  country  best  thought."  ^ 


Mauritius. 

The  Dutch,  who  gave  the  name  to  this  island,  found  it 
uninhabited  in  1598.  From  1715  to  1810  it  belonged 
to  France,  and  at  the  latter  date  it  was  annexed  by 
England.  Of  the  present  population  (370,000)  about 
two-thirds  are  East  Indians  by  birth  or  descent,  the  rest 
are  Creoles  of  various  races.  At  the  time  of  its  capture 
by  England  there  were  four  R,G.  priests  in  the  island,  and 
the  religion  of  the  whole  population  was  nominally  R.C. 
On  the  abolition  of  slavery  in  1834  the  S.P.G.  helped  to 
establish  schools  for  some  of  the  90,000  emancipated 
slaves.  In  1854,  when  an  English  Bishop  (Eyan)  was 
consecrated  for  Mauritius,  half  the  population,  which  was 
reckoned  at  190,000,  were  "living  in  a  state  of  heathen- 
ism." Since  this  time  a  large  amount  of  successful  work 
has  been  done,  especially  amongst  the  Indian  coolies,  who 
constitute  a  majority  of  the  population  and  are  likely  to 
become  the  permanent  inhabitants  of  the  islands. 

Work  is  also  being  carried  on  with  success  amongst 
the  Creoles  in  the  Seychelles  Islands. 

The  G.M.S.  started  work  amongst  the  Indian  coolies  in 
1856.  Since  then,  7000  converts  have  been  baptized, 
many  of    whom  have  returned  to  India.     The  CMS.  is 

^  Christian  Missions  in  Madagascar ^  p.  104  f. 


AFRICA  (Mauritius)  365 

now  withdrawing  its  grant  and  handing  its  work  over  to 
the  bishop  and  the  diocesan  representatives. 

The  L.M.S.  supported  for  many  years  a  mission  in 
Mauritius  which  was  started  in  1814. 

The  B.C.  clergy,  who  number  about  50,  include  6 
Jesuits  and  11  from  the  Congregation  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  and  the  Sacred  Heart  of  Mary.  The  rest  are 
parish  priests. 

The  population  of  the  island  includes  41,000  Mo- 
hammedans. 


XIII. 
AMERICA  (U.S.A.). 

Spanish  Missions  in  America. 

Ponce  de  Leon,  who  sailed  for  Florida  about  1520 
carried  with  him  instructions  from  the  king  which  required 
him  to  summon  the  natives  to  submit  themselves  to  the 
Catholic  faith  and  to  the  King  of  Spain  under  threat  of  the 
sword  and  slavery.  His  expedition  was  driven  away  by  the 
natives  whom  he  desired  to  convert.  In  1565  Menendez 
founded  the  city  of  St.  Augustine.  The  Floridas  were 
eventually  occupied  by  Dominicans,  Jesuits,  and  Franciscans, 
and  seventy  years  later  the  Christians  were  reckoned  at 
30,000.  For  the  115  years  during  which  Spain  retained 
possession  of  Florida,  the  number  of  Christians  continued 
to  increase,  but  when  in  1763  Florida  was  transferred  to 
the  British  Crown,  "no  longer  sustained  by  the  terror  of 
the  Spanish  arms  and  by  subsidies  from  the  Spanish 
treasury,  the  whole  fabric  of  Spanish  civilization  and 
Christianization  tumbled  at  once  to  complete  ruin  and 
extinction."  ^ 

In  New  Mexico  the  first  permanent  occupation  of 
territory  took  place  in  1598,  when  the  Spanish  settlers 
were  accompanied  by  Franciscan  friars.  In  ten  years 
8000  persons  were  baptized,  and  ere  long  the  entire 
population  was  nominally  Christian.  When,  however, 
eighty  years  later,  a  revolt  occurred  against  the  Spanish 
Government,  within  "  a  few  weeks  no  Spaniard  was  in 
New  Mexico  north  of  El  Paso.  Christianity  and  civilization 
were  swept  away  at  one  blow.     The  measures  of  compulsion 

*  A  History  of  American  Christianity,  by  L.  W.  Bacon,  p.  11. 


AMERICA    (U.S.A.)  367 

that  had  been  used  to  stamp  out  every  vestige  of  the  old 
reh'gion  were  put  into  use  against  the  new."  ^ 

Although  the  Spaniards  returned,  twenty  years  later, 
they  never  again  succeeded  in  producing  more  than  a 
sullen  submission  to  the  religion  of  their  conquerors.  In 
1845,  20,000  out  of  a  total  of  80,000  professed  to  be 
Christians.  Spanish  settlements  and  missions  on  the 
Pacific  Coast  date  from  1769.  By  1834  these  missions 
had  amassed  much  wealth,  but  the  Indian  Christians  were 
in  a  condition  of  servitude.  In  this  year  the  mission 
property  was  distributed,  and  as  a  result,  "in  eight  years 
the  more  than  thirty  thousand  Catholic  Christians  had 
dwindled  to  less  than  five  thousand,  the  enormous  estates 
of  the  missions  were  dissipated,  the  converts  lapsed  into 
savagery  and  paganism."  ^ 

Although  the  Spanish  missions  in  North  America 
produced  such  small  spiritual  results  and  ended  so  dis- 
astrously, it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  early  records 
of  these  missions  contain  many  accounts  of  heroism  and 
devotion  which  go  far  to  redeem  their  story  from  the 
realm  of  mere  secular  history. 

Franciscan  and  Jesuit  Missions. 

Between  1717  and  1833,  20  Franciscan  missionaries 
laboured  among  the  Indians  of  Texas,  and  in  1769  a 
Franciscan  monk  began  a  series  of  missions  at  San  Diego 
in  California. 

The  northern  part  of  what  is  now  the  U.S.A.,  stretching 
from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Eocky  Mountains,  was  formerly 
included  in  the  two  French  provinces  of  Canada  and 
Louisiana.  As  long  as  the  French  rule  lasted  the  greater 
part  of  the  missionary  work  amongst  the  Indians  was 
carried  on  by  French  Jesuits.  The  first  mission  west  of 
Huron  county  was  begun  in  1660  amongst  the  Chippewa 
and  Ottawa  Indians.  Within  the  next  few  years  mission 
stations  were  established   at  Sault  St.  Marie,  Mackinaw, 

1  Ibid.,  p.  12.  a  xiici,^  p.  14, 


368  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Green  Bay,  and  among  the  Foxes  and  Mascoutins.  Pere 
Marquette,  one  of  the  greatest  of  the  Jesuit  pioneer 
missionaries,  started  work  amongst  the  Ilhnois  in  1674, 
which  was  carried  on  with  such  success  that  in  1725  the 
entire  Illinois  nation  was  civilized  and  Christianized.  Here, 
however,  as  in  many  other  districts,  the  missionary  work 
was  interrupted  by  wars,  and  in  1750  the  whole  Illinois 
nation  was  reduced  to  1000  persons. 

In  1818  work  was  begun  amongst  the  Chippewas  on 
the  Eed  River  inside  the  U.S.A.  boundary.  Missions  were 
also  started  in  East  Minnesota  in  1837,  amongst  the 
Menominees  of  Wisconsin  in  1844,  and  among  the 
Winnebagos  in  1850. 

Anglican  and  Protestant  Missions. 

The  first  charter  for  an  English  colony,  which  was 
granted  to  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert  in  1583,  contained  a 
reference  to  the  "  compassion  "  of  God  "  for  poor  infidels,  it 
seeming  probable  that  God  hath  reserved  these  Gentiles 
to  be  introduced  into  Christian  civility  by  the  English 
nation." 

The  first  attempt  of  a  missionary  character  made  by 
the  English  in  North  America  was  made  by  Thomas  Heriot, 
the  scientist  and  philosopher,  who  went  out  as  one  of  a  band 
of  colonists  to  Virginia.  During  the  stay  of  the  colonists 
at  Eoanoke  (1585-86),  Heriot  "many  times  and  in  every 
towne  "  where  he  "  came,"  "  made  declaration  of  the  contents 
of  the  Bible  "  and  of  the  "  chiefe  points  of  religion  "  to  the 
natives  according  as  he  "  was  able."  One  of  the  natives, 
who  was  called  Manteo,  returned  to  England  with  the 
English  party  in  1586,  was  appointed  by  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh  as  Lord  of  Roanoke,  and  was  baptized  in  that 
island  (August  13,  1587).  This  is  the  first  recorded 
baptism  of  a  native  of  Virginia. 

In  1588  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  gave  £100  to  the 
Virginian  Company  "  for  the  propagation  of  the  Christian 
religion  in  that  settlement." 


AMERICA    (U.S.A.)  369 

In  1560  John  Knox  wrote  in  the  first  Confession- 
"This  glaid  tydingis  of  the  kyngdome  sail  be  precheit 
through  the  haill  warld  for  a  witness  unto  all  natiouns 
and  then  sail  the  end  cum."  More  than  a  century  later 
the  Scottish  General  Assembly  (1699)  enjoined  the 
ministers  whom  it  sent  forth  with  the  Darien  expedition 
to  labour  among  the  heathen. 

Pocahontas,  the  daughter  of  the  Indian  chief  Powhatan 
who  in  1607  persuaded  her  father  to  save  the  life  of 
Captain  Smith,  the  President  of  Virginia,  became  a 
Christian,  and  having  married  an  Englishman,  came  to 
England  and  was  received  by  King  James. 

The  Pilgrim  Fathers,  who  sailed  for  Massachusetts  in 
the    Mayflower   (1620),    were    not    unmindful    of    their 
obligation   to    Christianize   the   American  Indians.     Their 
pastor,  John   Eobinson,  wrote   to  the   Governor  of  New 
Plymouth,  "0  that  you  had  converted  some  before  you 
had  killed  any."     One  of  their  number  was  set  apart  "  to 
promote  the  conversion  of  the  Indians."     In  1621  one  of 
the  Puritan  Elders,  Eobert  Cushman,  appealed  to  England 
on  behalf  of  the  Indians,  and  in   1636  the  colony  passed 
legislation    in    order   to   promote    the   "preaching   of  the 
gospel  among  them."     In   1628   the  charter  granted   by 
Charles    i.    to    the   colony  of  Massachusetts   stated   that 
"the    principal    end    of    the    plantation"    was     that    the 
colonists  may  "win  and  invite  the  natives  of  the  country 
to  the  knowledge  of  the  only  true   God  and  Saviour  of 
mankind  and  the  Christian  faith."     In  1646   the  Colonial 
Legislature  passed  an  Act  for  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel 
among  the  Indians. 

The  formation  of  the  Corporation  for  the  Propagation 
of  the  Gospel  in  New  England  (see  p.  56)  was  indirectly 
due  to  the  reports  which  had  reached  England  concerning 
the  labours  of  John  Eliot  (1604-90),  the  "Apostle  of  the 
Indians."  After  taking  his  degree  at  Jesus  College 
Cambridge  (1623),  he  acted  for  a  time  as  an  usher  in  a 
school  near  Chelmsford,  and,  saihng  for  America  in  1631, 
was  appointed  as  the  Presbyterian  pastor  of  Koxbury* 
24 


370  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

near  Boston,  in  1632.  When  he  began  his  missionary 
work  there  were  about  twenty  tribes  of  Indians  on  the 
plantations  adjoining  Massachusetts  Bay,  and  for  many 
years  Ehot  combined  the  charge  of  the  church  at 
Eoxbury  with  pioneer  evangelistic  work  amongst  the 
Indians.  His  biographer  remarks  of  him  that  his  name 
written  backwards  spells  "  toile,"  and  few  missionaries 
have  toiled  harder  than  he.  His  first  attempt  to 
evangelize  the  Indians  was  made  at  the  Falls  of  the 
Grand  Kiver  in  1646.  His  great  desire  was  to  establish 
Indian  settlements  which  should  realize  the  Jewish 
theocracy  described  in  Exodus.  His  first  baptisms  were 
at  Natick,  near  Boston,  where  a  settlement  of  Indians 
was  organized  in  1651,  in  accordance  with  the  directions 
given  to  the  Israelites  in  Exodus  xviii.  His  work  was 
imitated  by  Mayhews,  "  a  pious  colonist,"  and  others,  and 
ere  long  there  had  arisen  in  New  England  fourteen 
"praying  Indian  villages,"  containing  3600  Christians. 
Everything  went  well  till  1675,  when  the  war  between 
the  English  and  the  Indians  brought  about  the  destruction 
of  nearly  all  their  settlements  and  put  back  the  work 
amongst  Indians  for  many  years.  He  was  an  indefatigable 
student  and  translator,  and  in  1661  he  published  the 
New  Testament  in  the  Indian  (Mohican)  language,  and 
two  years  later  the  Old  Testament  was  also  issued.  He 
published  in  addition  Indian  grammars  and  primers,  and 
translations  of  several  English  theological  books.  He 
died  at  Eoxbury  at  the  age  of  eighty-six  in  1690. 
After  witnessing  the  destruction  of  his  Christian  settle- 
ments and  the  apparent  ruin  of  his  work,  he  wrote  to 
Eobert  Boyle,  shortly  before  his  death,  "  My  understanding 
leaves  me,  my  memory  fails  me,  my  utterance  fails  me, 
but  I  thank  God  my  charity  holds  out  still."  His  dying 
words  were,  "  Welcome  joy." 

The  Scottish  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  Christian 
Knowledge,  which  was  founded  in  Edinburgh  in  1701, 
gave  some  occasional  assistance  to  missionary  work.  It 
helped   to    support    David    Brainerd,    who    was    born    in 


AMERICA    (U.S.A.)  371 

Connecticut  in  1718.  For  nearly  four  years  he  worked 
amongst  Indians  in  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey,  and 
gathered  some  converted  Indians  at  a  settlement  which  he 
named  Bethel,  where  he  attempted  to  teach  them  husbandry. 
He  died  before  he  was  thirty  in  1747.  His  Journal, 
which  was  published  in  1746,  and  his  Life,  which  was 
afterwards  written  by  his  friend  President  Edwards,  in- 
fluenced many  in  later  times  to  give  their  lives  to  the 
work  of  Christian  missions. 


Anglican  Missions  to  Indians  and  Negroes. 

New  York. — In  1704  Mr.  Elias  Neau,  a  Frenchman, 
was  appointed  by  the  S.P.G.  as  a  catechist  to  work  amongst 
negroes  and  in  charge  of  a  "  catechising  school,"  having 
received  a  licence  from  the  Governor  of  New  York  "  to 
catechize  the  negroes  and  Indians  and  the  children  of  the 
town."  In  exercising  his  office  he  found  reason  to  com- 
plain that  "  the  generality "  of  the  "  inhabitants "  were 
"  strangely  prejudiced  with  a  horrid  notion,  thinking  the 
Christian  knowledge "  would  be  "  a  means  to  make  their 
slaves  more  cunning  and  apter  to  wickedness."  Later  on 
the  Eev.  S.  Auchmuty  (1747-64)  reported  that  "not 
one  single  Black  "  who  had  been  "  admitted  by  him  to  the 
Holy  Communion  "  had  "  turned  out  bad,  or  been  in  any 
shape  a  disgrace  to  our  holy  profession,"  and  that  the  masters 
of  the  negroes  had  become  "  more  desirous  than  they  used 
to  be  of  having  them  instructed."  In  1707  the  Eev.  W. 
Barclay  became  minister  at  Albany  and  helped  to  prepare 
for  publication  in  the  Iroquois  language  translations  of  the 
Gospels  and  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  which  had 
been  made  by  Mr.  Freeman,  "a  devout  minister  of  the 
Dutch  Church."  He  and  his  successors  started  work 
amongst  the  Mohawks.  Towards  the  furnishing  of  the 
first  chapel  for  the  Mohawks,  Queen  Anne  contributed 
"  altar  plate  and  linen." 

In  1727  the  S.P.G.  appointed  the  Eev.  J.  Miln  to 
minister  to  the  Indians  at  Fort  Hunter  near  Albany.     The 


372  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

result    of  his   labours  was  thus   described   by  the  officer 
commanding  the  Fort  Hunter  garrison  in  1735  : 

"  I  have  found  the  Mohawk  Indians  very  much  civilized, 
which  I  take  to  be  owing  to  the  industry  and  pains  taken 
by  the  Eev.  Mr.  John  Miln  in  teaching  and  instructing  them 
in  the  Christian  religion.  The  number  of  communicants 
increases  daily.  .  .  .  The  said  Indians  express  the  greatest 
satisfaction  with  Mr.  Miln.  .  .  .  They  are  become  as 
perempter  in  observing  their  rules  as  any  society  of 
Christians  commonly  are.  .  .  .  They  are  very  observing  of 
the  Sabbath,  conveneing  by  themselves  and  singing  Psalms 
on  that  day,  and  frequently  applying  to  me  that  Mr.  Miln 
may  be  oftener  among  them."  ^ 

By  1742  a  missionary  was  able  to  report  that  only 
two  or  three  of  the  tribe  remained  unbaptized. 

A  mission  to  the  Oneidas  was  opened  in  1816  which  made 
good  progress,  but  in  1823  the  U.S.A.  Government  trans- 
ferred the  Indians  to  a  new  reserve  in  Wisconsin.  All  the 
Indians  on  this  new  settlement  are  now  baptized  Christians. 

South  Carolina. — The  first  missionary  sent  out  by  the 
S.P.G.  for  work  amongst  the  heathen  was  the  Eev. 
S.  Thomas.  He  was  designed  for  a  mission  to  the 
Yammonsees  and  on  his  appointment  £10  was  voted  by 
the  society  "  to  be  laid  out  in  stuffs  for  the  use  of  the 
wild  Indians."  Mr.  Thomas  was  so  ill  during  his  voyage 
down  the  Channel  that  his  life  was  despaired  of  at 
Plymouth,  but  after  a  voyage  of  three  months  he  reached 
Charlestown  on  Christmas  Day,  1702.  As  the  Yam- 
monsees were  engaged  in  fighting  at  the  time  of  his 
arrival,  he  devoted  his  attention  to  the  negro  and  Indian 
slaves  in  the  Cooper  Eiver  district,  and  at  the  same  time 
ministered  to  the  English  settlers,  who  "  were  making  near 
approach  to  that  heathenism  which  is  to  be  found  among 
negroes  and  Indians."  Eeturning  to  England  in  1705  in 
the  hope  of  securing  additional  fellow- workers,  he  died  in 
1706. 

^  See  Reports  and  Letters  of  the  Society's  Missionaries  in  Wisconsin,  vol 
A.,  26,  p.  4. 


AMERICA    (U.S.A.)  373 

In  1713  the  Eev.  G.  Johnston  of  Charlestown  brought 
to  England  a  Yammonsee  prince,  at  the  request  of  his 
father  and  of  the  "  Emperor  of  the  Indians,"  in  order  that 
he  might  be  instructed  in  the  Christian  religion  and  in 
English  manners.  He  was  "  put  to  school  and  instructed 
at  the  charge  of  the  society,"  and  was  baptized  by  the 
Bishop  of  London  in  the  Eoyal  Chapel  of  Somerset  House 
on  Quinquagesima  Sunday,  1715,  at  the  age  of  nineteen, 
Lord  Carteret,  one  of  the  proprietors  of  South  Carolina, 
being  one  of  his  sponsors.  After  his  baptism  he  was 
presented  to  the  King.  On  his  return  to  America  he 
continued  his  education  under  Mr.  Johnston,  to  whose  care 
the  eldest  son  of  the  "  Emperor  of  the  Cherequois "  was 
also  entrusted.  A  few  months  later  a  war  broke  out  in 
which  the  missionaries  and  the  Indian  Christians  suffered 
grievously. 

In  1743,  two  negroes  having  been  purchased  and 
trained  as  teachers  at  the  cost  of  the  S.P.G.,  a  school  was 
opened  at  Charleston  by  Commissary  Garden,  with  the 
object  of  training  the  negroes  as  instructors  of  their 
countrymen.  The  school  was  continued  with  success  for 
more  than  twenty  years,  many  adult  slaves  also  attending 
in  the  evening  for  instruction.  This  school  was  maintained 
in  the  face  of  many  difficulties  and  at  a  time  when  the 
Government  had  not  one  institution  for  the  education  of 
the  50,000  slaves  in  the  colony.^ 

North  Carolina.  —  Attempts  were  made  in  several 
districts  by  missionaries  of  the  S.P.G.  to  evangelize  the 
negro  slaves,  but  in  many  cases  their  efforts  were  frus- 
trated by  the  opposition  of  the  slave-owners. 

Mr.  Eainsford,  who  was  stationed  at  Chowan  in  1712, 
baptized  "  upwards  of  forty  negroes "  in  one  year.  As 
the  prejudices  of  the  masters  were  overcome  a  missionary 
would  baptize  sometimes  fifteen  to  twenty-four  negroes  in 
a  month  and  as  many  as  seventy  in  a  year.  The  Eev. 
C.  Hall  reported  having  baptized  355  in  eight  years. 
Some  of  the  missionaries  received  very  little  support  from 

^  Two  Hundred  Years  of  the  S.F.G.,  p.  18. 


374  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

the  colonists,  and  suffered  severe  hardships  in  consequence. 
Thus  the  Eev.  J.  Urmston  reported  in  1711  that  he  and 
his  family  were  "  in  manifest  danger  of  perishing  for  want 
of  food."  "  We  have,"  he  said,  "  liv'd  many  a  day  only  on 
a  dry  crust  and  a  draught  of  water  out  of  the  Sound." 

Georgia  was  established  as  a  colony  in  1733.  On  the 
return  of  Mr.  Quincy,  the  society's  first  missionary  in 
Georgia,  the  Eev.  John  Wesley  was  appointed  as  his 
successor.  The  meeting  of  the  S.P.G.  committee  at  which 
he  was  appointed  was  held  on  January  16,  1736. 
Amongst  those  who  were  present  were  the  Bishops  of 
London,  Lichfield,  Eochester,  and  Gloucester.  Wesley 
sailed  for  Georgia  in  the  hope  that  he  might  be  able  to 
evangelize  the  heathen,  but  the  claims  of  the  settlers  at 
Savannah  left  him  little  time  to  preach  to  the  Indians, 
though  he  made  several  attempts  to  do  so.  He  returned 
to  England  after  an  absence  of  two  years.  During  his 
stay  in  Georgia  he  got  into  trouble  with  some  of  the 
settlers  owing  to  his  refusal  to  read  the  Burial  Service 
over  a  Nonconformist,  and  by  others  he  was  accused  of 
being  a  Papist.  The  actual  difficulty  which  caused  his 
abrupt  departure  from  the  colony  arose  in  connection  with 
his  refusal  to  admit  to  Holy  Communion  a  member  of  his 
congregation.  A  little  later  missionary  work  was  started 
amongst  the  Chickasaw  Indians  and  negroes. 

There  appears  to  be  no  account  of  missionary  work 
amongst  the  Indians  and  negroes  in  Pennsylvania  sup- 
ported by  the  S.P.G.  until  1756,  when  the  society  granted 
£100  per  annum  for  the  training  of  native  teachers  in  the 
college  at  Philadelphia  under  the  Eev.  Dr.  Smith. 

In  New  England  the  efforts  of  the  missionaries  to 
evangelize  the  Indians  and  negroes  were  bitterly  opposed 
by  the  colonists.  In  1730  the  Eev.  J.  Usher  reported 
from  Bristol  that  "  sundry  negroes "  had  made  "  applica- 
tion for  baptism  that  were  able  to  render  a  very  good 
account  of  the  hope  that  was  in  them,"  but  he  was 
"not  permitted  to  comply  with  their  requests  .  .  .  being 
forbid  by  their  masters."      In  the  same  year,  however,  he 


AAIERICA   (U.S.A.)  375 

succeeded  in  baptizing  three  adult  Indians,  and  later  on 
the  Bristol  congregation  included  "about  thirty  negroes 
and  Indians,"  most  of  whom  joined  "  in  the  public  service 
very  decently." 

At  Stratford  Dr.  Johnson  "  always  had  a  catechetical 
lecture  during  the  summer  months,  attended  by  many 
negroes  and  some  Indians,  as  well  as  the  whites,  about 
70  or  80  in  all."  At  Naragansett,  Dr.  Macsparran  had 
a  class  of  70  Indians  and  negroes,  whom  he  frequently 
catechised  and  instructed  before  Divine  Service,  and  the 
Eev.  S.  Honyman  of  Newport,  Ehode  Island,  besides 
baptizing  some  Indians,  numbered  among  his  congregation 
"above  100  negroes  who  constantly  attended  the  Publick 
Worship."  Among  the  Naragansett  tribe  in  Ehode  Island 
Catechist  Bennet  of  the  Mohawk  Mission,  New  York 
Province,  laboured  for  a  short  time  on  the  invitation  of 
their  king.^ 

New  Jersey. — Attempts  were  made  in  several  parts  of 
this  province  to  do  missionary  work  amongst  negroes 
between  1701  and  1750.  Towards  the  end  of  this  period 
(1746-51)  the  Eev.  Thomas  Thompson  laboured  in  New 
Jersey.  In  1751  he  left  America  in  order  to  go  as  a 
missionary  to  the  Gold  Coast,  being  the  first  S.P.G. 
missionary  and  probably  the  first  Englishman  to  work  as 
a  missionary  in  Africa. 

The  difficulties  which  the  missionaries  connected  with 
the  S.P.G.  had  to  face  in  America  were  the  same  as 
those  which  confronted  John  Eliot  and  the  Moravian 
missionaries.  These  were  created  by  the  attitude  of  the 
colonists  towards  the  Indians  and  by  the  reluctance  of 
slave-owners  to  allow  their  slaves  to  receive  any  kind  of 
education.  Again  and  again  a  promising  community  of 
Christian  Indians  was  established,  only  to  be  scattered  or 
massacred  in  one  of  the  intermittent  wars  which  were 
waged  between  the  non-Christian  Indians  and  the  colonists. 
Had  these  Christian  communities  been  allowed  to  develop, 
it  is  inconceivable  that  the  American  people  could  have 
*  See  Two  Hundred  Years  of  the  S.P.O.y  p.  47. 


376  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

incurred  the  disgrace  of  allowing  the  twentieth  century  to 
dawn  upon  their  country  whilst  a  large  proportion  of 
its  Indian  subjects  still  remained  heathen.  The  diffi- 
culties raised  by  the  slave-owners  in  regard  to  the 
evangelization  of  the  negroes  retarded  but  have  not  pre- 
vented the  nominal  Christianization  of  the  race.  In 
many  cases  these  difficulties  were  not  removed  until  the 
emancipation  of  the  negroes  in  1863. 

After  the  Declaration  of  Independence  the  Anglican 
Christians  in  the  U.SA.  were  comparatively  few  in 
number  and  were  not  in  a  position  to  develop  mission 
work  amongst  the  Indians,  but  by  the  middle  of  the 
nineteenth  century  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church 
began  to  organize  such  work. 

The  first  of  a  chain  of  Anglican  missions  was  opened 
at  Gull  Lake,  Minnesota,  for  the  Chippewas  in  1852.  In 
1859  Henry  Benjamin  Whipple,  who  became  the  great 
champion  of  the  Indians  in  their  deahngs  with  the  U.SA. 
Government,  was  consecrated  as  the  first  Bishop  of 
Minnesota.  In  1860  Bishop  Whipple  opened  a  mission 
amongst  the  Santee  Sioux  Indians.  In  1872  William 
Hobart  Hare  was  consecrated  as  a  missionary  bishop 
to  the  Indians.  The  Sioux  Indians  who  lived  in 
South  Dakota  were  his  special  charge.  For  thirty-seven 
years  Bishop  Hare,  who  eventually  became  known 
throughout  the  U.S.A.  as  the  Apostle  to  the  Indians, 
shared  the  life  and  the  privations  of  his  beloved  Indians, 
and  before  his  death  in  1909  he  had  the  satisfaction 
of  seeing  a  large  Indian  community  which  was  Christian 
in  something  more  than  name.  He  was  "  God's  chief 
human  instrument  in  the  transformation  of  a  tribe  of 
murderous  savages  into  gentle,  worshipful  citizens  of  the 
Kingdom  of  Christ." ^  Of  the  25,000  Christians  in  South 
Dakota  10,000  are  baptized  members  of  the  AngHcan 
Church.  At  the  present  time  the  Anglican  Church  has 
missions  to  Indians  in  twelve  states  and  supports  23 
white  and  25  Indian  clergy. 

*  Hflsuihook  of  the  Church's  Mission  to  Indians^  p.  139, 


AMERICA    (U.S.A.)  377 

In  the  state  of  Oklahoma,  which  contains  the  largest 
number  of  Indians,  there  are  about  120,000  Indians  or 
people  with  Indian  blood. 

The  greater  part  of  the  missionary  work  in  this  state 
is  carried  on  by  the  Eoman  Catholics  and  the  Presbyterians. 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  attempts  made  by 
the  Moravians  to  work  amongst  Indians  in  Georgia  and 
New  York  during  the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth  century. 
Later  on  they  started  missions  among  the  Delawares  and 
associated  tribes  in  Ohio,  and  still  later,  in  Ontario  and 
Kansas.  Early  in  the  nineteenth  century  the  Friends 
established  missions  in  Indiana,  and,  at  a  later  period, 
in  Oklahoma. 

"The  Presbyterians  began  their  work  among  the 
Wyandottes  about  the  same  time  as  the  Friends,  and  later 
among  the  Cherokees,  Osages,  and  Pawnees.  To  the  Con- 
gregational missionaries  we  owe  most  of  our  knowledge  of 
the  Sioux  language,  their  work  being  almost  entirely  in  the 
Santee  or  Eastern  dialect.  .  .  .  The  Methodists  were  the 
first  to  minister  to  the  Flatheads  in  the  mountains  at  the 
head  of  the  Missouri  Eiver ;  they  also  had  missions  among 
the  Chippewas.  The  Baptists  laboured  for  the  Weas,  a 
sub-tribe  of  the  Miamis,  in  1818-21.  Later  on  missions 
were  established  for  the  Pottawatomie,  near  South  Bend, 
Indiana,  and  among  the  Ottawas  on  Grand  Eiver,  Michigan. 
This  is  but  passing  mention  of  work  divinely  inspired  and 
nobly  done  ;  lack  of  space  prevents  more  detailed  description 
of  these  the  earliest  missions  among  the  Indians  of  the 
Mississippi  Eiver  region."  ^ 

The  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign 
Missions,  which  was  organized  in  1810  and  is  the  oldest 
missionary  society  having  its  origin  in  the  U.S.A.,  worked 
for  many  years  amongst  the  Indians.  Up  to  1890  it  had 
supported  1600  missionaries,  of  whom  512  had  been  sent 
to  work  amongst  the  Indians.  The  first  missionary,  the 
Eev.   Cyrus  Kingsbury,  was  sent  in   1815   to  start  work 

^  A  Handbook  of  the  Church's  Mission  to  the  Indians  (Christian  Missions 
Publishing  Co.,  U.S.A.),  p.  103. 


378  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS      . 

amongst  the  Cherokees  of  Georgia.  In  1818  a  second 
station  was  opened  amongst  the  Choctaws  on  the  Yazoo 
Eiver.  In  1825  a  half-breed  Cherokee  invented  the 
Cherokee  alphabet,  with  the  result  that  within  four  years 
half  his  nation  had  learned  to  read.  The  work  of  the 
A.B.C.F.M.  made  rapid  progress  for  several  years,  but  was 
eventually  checked  and  interrupted  by  the  ill-treatment 
of  the  Cherokee,  Sioux,  and  other  Indians  by  American 
settlers  who  took  possession  of  their  land. 

In  1834  the  Dutch  Eeformed  Church  handed  over  to 
the  A.B.C.F.M.  their  mission  stations  west  of  the  Eocky 
Mountains,  and  this  work  was  extended  amongst  the 
Spokanes  and  Cayuses.  In  1848,  in  consequence  of  a 
massacre,  the  missionaries  had  to  be  withdrawn,  but  seven 
years  later,  when  they  were  able  to  return,  they  found 
that  a  large  proportion  of  their  converts  had  "  lived  con- 
sistent Christian  lives,  having  continued  the  reading  of  the 
Scriptures  in  their  own  languages  and  also  kept  up  regular 
family  worship."     The  Cayuses  have  now  become  extinct. 

In  1846  the  American  Missionary  Association  for  the 
promotion  of  missionary  work  amongst  the  Indians  was 
established,  and  in  1883  the  A.B.C.F.M.  transferred  to 
this  society  the  care  of  all  its  missions  to  American 
Indians. 

The  Women's  National  Indian  Association  has  done 
much  to  influence  public  opinion  in  favour  of  the  Indians, 
and  has  started  several  missions  amongst  them  which  it 
afterwards  transferred  to  the  charge  of  various  missionary 
societies. 

The  American  Baptist  Home  Missionary  Society,  which 
began  its  work  in  1807,  and  the  A.M.E.C.  have  work 
amongst  several  different  tribes.  A  missionary  of  the 
latter  body,  John  Stewart,  who  was  called  the  "Apostle 
to  the  Wyandottes,"  died  in  1823. 

The  total  number  of  Anglican  and  Protestant  mission- 
aries now  at  work  amongst  the  American  Indians  is 
about  200. 

The    societies    which    report    the    largest    amount    of 


AMERICA    (U.S.A.)  379 

work  amongst  American  Indians  are    the    following  (the 
figures  indicate  the  number  of  Christian  adherents) : 

The  Presbyterian  Church  Board  of  Home  Missions, 
18,108;  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  12,900; 
American  Baptist  Home  Mission  Society,  8156;  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  5000  ;  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church,  South,  5000.  Twenty-five  American 
societies  report  a  total  of  66,928  adherents  and  28,092 
baptized  Christians.  These  figures  do  not  include  the 
Indian  Christians  belonging  to  the  E.C.  Church. 

R.C.  Missions  to  Indians.  —  Of  the  Indians  in  the 
U.S.A.  and  Alaska  64,741  are  attached  to  the  K.C. 
missions.  Of  these  3200  are  in  the  diocese  of  Alaska, 
9633  in  the  diocese  of  Santa  Fe,  7344  in  the  diocese  of 
Lead,  3664  in  the  diocese  of  Crookstone,  3643  in  the 
diocese  of  Seattle,  4380  in  the  diocese  of  Helena,  and 
3890  in  the  diocese  of  Great  Falls.  During  1912  the 
number  of  adults  baptized  was  1017.  The  number  of 
priests  attached  to  the  E.C.  missions  is  163.  In  1874 
the  Bureau  of  Catholic  Indian  Missions,  of  which  the  E.C. 
Archbishop  of  Baltimore  was  president,  was  established. 
This  Bureau  helps  to  support  the  mission  schools  and 
to  maintain  and  develop  the  various  missions.  The  Society 
for  the  Preservation  of  the  Faith  among  Indian  children, 
established  in  1901,  collects  from  each  of  its  members,  who 
number  about  50,000,  an  annual  subscription  of  25  cents 
for  the  benefit  of  the  missions. 

The  number  of  Indians  in  the  U.S.A.,  according  to 
the  census  of  1910,  was  265,683,  and  in  Alaska,  25,331. 
The  largest  number  of  Indians  is  found  in  Oklahoma, 
namely,  74,825  ;  while  Arizona  has  29,201 ;  New  Mexico, 
20,573;  South  Dakota,  19,137;  California,  16,371; 
Washington,  10,997;  Montana,  10,745;  Wisconsin,  10,142, 
etc.  Indians  are  found  in  every  state  and  territory,  but 
their  number  in  Delaware,  Vermont,  New  Hampshire, 
and  West  Virginia  is  less  than  50. 

It  is  satisfactory  to  note  that,  after  several  fluctuations, 
their  number  appears  to  be  definitely  increasing.     Their 


380  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

total  number  was  278,000  in  1870,  244,000  in  1880, 
248,253  in  1890,  and  237,196  in  1900.  Thus,  their 
number  decreased  from  1870  to  1900,  but  it  increased 
considerably  (28,487)  during  the  decade  between  1900 
and  1910.  The  number  of  Indians  in  Alaska  is  on  the 
decrease,  namely,  from  32,996  in  1880  and  29,536  in 
1900  to  25,331  in  1910. 

The  number  of  Indian  tribes  is  large,  but  some  have 
very  few  members,  six  tribes  being  represented  by  a  single 
member  each,  and  30  having  a  membership  under  10.  The 
Cherokees  have  31,489  members;  the  Navajo,  32,455; 
the  Chippewa,  20,214;  the  Choctaw,  15,917;  and  the 
Teton  Sioux,  14,284.  Of  the  remaining  continental 
United  States  tribes  none  has  as  many  as  7000  members, 
but  there  are  74  tribes  represented  by  not  less  than 
500  individuals.  In  Alaska  the  Kuswogmiut  have  1480 
members  and  the  Aleutt  1451,  but  none  of  the  other 
tribes  in  the  territory  has  as  many  as  a  thousand  members. 

Alasha. 

Alaska  contains  a  population  of  65,000,  which 
includes  about  15,000  Eskimo,  2000  Aleutians,  25,231 
Indians,  2000  Chinese,  and  a  steadily  increasing  number 
of  white  immigrants  and  half-breeds.  It  was  bought  from 
Eussia  by  the  U.S.A.  in  1867. 

A  mission  was  founded  by  the  Eussian  Orthodox 
Church  in  the  Aleutian  Islands  between  Kamtchatka  and 
Alaska  in  1793.  We  have  referred  elsewhere  (see  p.  276) 
to  the  good  work  accomplished  here  by  John  Veniaminoff, 
afterwards  Archbishop  Innocent.  The  mission  was 
extended  to  Alaska  in  1834,  and  is  now  superintended  by 
a  bishop  whose  diocese  is  called  "The  Aleutian  Islands 
and  North  America"  and  whose  cathedral  is  at  San 
Francisco.  The  members  of  the  "  orthodox  "  Church  in  his 
diocese  number  between  40,000  and  50,000  and  include 
over  10,000  Indians,  Aleutians,  Creoles,  and  Eskimos. 

The   U.S.A.  Presbyterians  started   a  mission  at  Fort 


AMERICA   (U.S.A.)  381 

Wrangel  in  1877.  This  mission  has  now  8  stations 
and  4000  Christians.  The  Moravians,  who  started  in 
1885  amongst  the  Eskimos  in  the  south-west,  have  about 
1400  baptized  Christians  attached  to  the  mission. 

Missionary  work  in  Alaska  was  begun  by  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  U.S.A.  at  Anvik  in  1887, 
and  Bishop  Eowe  was  consecrated  as  its  first  bishop  in 
1895.  In  addition  to  the  bishop  there  are  12  clergy  and 
6  lay  readers.  There  are  2  industrial  schools,  6  mission 
hospitals,  20  churches,  and  20  mission  rooms.  At  Point 
Hope  there  are  3  Eskimos  who  conduct  services  for  their 
own  people  whom  the  bishop  hopes  to  be  able  to  ordain. 

Mr.  Duncan,  who  founded  the  C.M.S.  Mission  of 
Metlakahtla,  after  separating  from  the  C.M.S.,  migrated 
with  a  large  number  of  Indians  to  Annetta  Island,  which 
is  within  the  territory  of  Alaska. 

Orientals  in  the  U.S.A. 

The  Chinese  number  about  75,000,  of  whom  the 
greater  part  are  on  the  Pacific  Slope,  most  of  the 
remainder  being  in  the  Eocky  Mountain  districts.  The 
number  and  location  of  the  Japanese  are  about  the  same. 
The  immigrants  from  India  are  probably  fewer  in  number 
and  are  widely  scattered.  Attempts  to  evangelize  these 
immigrants  are  being  made  by  many  local  churches,  and 
organized  missionary  work  is  being  carried  on  on  a  small 
scale  on  the  Pacific  coast  and  in  a  few  large  cities  in  the 
east.  It  is  estimated  that  about  7000  Chinese  and 
about  5000  Japanese  have  been  baptized.  Very  few 
attempts  are  being  made  to  reach  the  Indians  except  by 
the  agents  of  the  American  Bible  Society. 


XIV. 
CANADA. 

Canadian  Indians. 

The  first  missionary  to  set  foot  in  Canada  was  Father 
Fl^ch^,  who  in  1610  joined  Champlain's  settlement  in  the 
Bay  of  Fundy,  Nova  Scotia.  Within  a  year  of  his  arrival 
the  chief  Membertou  and  all  his  tribe  had  become  Chris- 
tians. In  the  following  year  two  Jesuit  priests  arrived  to 
assist  in  the  missionary  work  which  had  been  begun. 

In  1633  Jesuit  missionaries  started  work  amongst  the 
Indian  tribes  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Quebec,  but  despite 
the  devotion  and  activity  of  the  missionaries  the  progress 
made  during  the  first  few  years  was  slow.  "On  one 
occasion  Brebeuf  appeared  before  the  chiefs  and  elders  at  a 
solemn  national  assembly  council,  described  heaven  and  hell 
with  images  suited  to  their  comprehension,  asked  to  which 
they  preferred  to  go  after  death,  and  then,  in  accordance 
with  the  invariable  Huron  custom  in  affairs  of  importance, 
presented  a  large  and  valuable  belt  of  wampum,  as  an 
invitation  to  take  the  path  to  Paradise."  ^ 

For  forty  years  the  Jesuits  laboured  hard,  but  in  vain, 
to  reclaim  the  Indians  from  their  wandering  life  and  to 
induce  them  to  abandon  their  cruel  customs.  In  individual 
cases  they  attained  some  success,  but,  partly  as  a  result  of 
fighting  between  them  and  the  French,  and  partly  as  the 
result  of  quarrels  among  themselves,  their  efforts  proved 
unavailing,  and  in  1675  the  mission  came  to  an  end. 

Of  the  deeds  of  heroism  accomplished  by  these  Jesuit 
missionaries  many  instances  might  be  given,  but  a  single 

^  The  Jesuits  in  North  America,  by  F.  Parkman,  p.  151. 
382 


CANADA  383 

illustration  must  suffice.  In  1660  Father  Eene,  who  was 
then  an  old  man,  in  response  to  an  invitation  brought  by 
a  party  of  Ottawas,  left  the  St.  Lawrence  and  travelled 
with  them  to  their  own  district.  After  a  while  they  left 
him  to  starve  on  the  shores  of  a  lake,  but  eventually  they 
relented  and  carried  him  to  the  home  of  their  tribe,  a  hundred 
miles  west  of  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  where,  living  in  a  miserable 
dug-out  under  a  hollow  tree,  he  began  his  missionary  work. 
Driven  out  of  this,  he  was  compelled  to  spend  his  first 
winter  in  a  little  cabin  built  of  fir-tree  branches.  The 
following  summer,  while  trying  to  reach  another  Indian 
settlement,  he  was  either  murdered  by  hostile  Indians,  or 
died  of  exposure.  This  story  aptly  illustrates  the  diffi- 
culties under  which  the  work  of  the  Jesuit  missionaries 
was  carried  on.  Many  of  the  missionaries  and  of  their  Indian 
converts  suffered  martyrdom,  which  was  inflicted  with  the 
most  barbarous  cruelty. 

After  the  recall  of  the  Jesuit  missionaries  in  1773  the 
care  of  the  Indians  fell  upon  the  Sulpicians  and  upon  those 
of  the  secular  clergy  who  were  able  to  assist  them. 
Sporadic  attempts  were  made  to  evangelize  the  Indians  in 
different  parts  of  Eastern  Canada,  and  in  1842  Father 
Thibault  began  to  preach  to  the  Crees  and  Blackfeet  in 
Alberta.  In  1844  Jesuit  missionaries  inaugurated  work 
on  Walpole  Island  in  Lake  Superior,  and  at  several  other 
centres. 

In  1860  Mr.  J.  G.  Kohl,  in  a  book  describing  his 
travels  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Superior,  refers  thus  to  the 
work  of  the  E.G.  missionaries : 

"Everything  I  heard  here  daily  of  the  pious  courage, 
patience,  and  self-devoting  zeal  of  these  missionaries  on  Lake 
Superior  caused  me  to  feel  intense  admiration.  They  live 
isolated  and  scattered  in  little  log  huts  round  the  lake,  often 
no  better  off  than  the  natives."  ^ 

Between   1850  and  1870  Oblates  and  other  mission- 
aries   started  work   amongst    several  tribes  in   the  north- 
*  Wanderings  round  Lake  Sujjerior,  xix.  306. 


r^ 


384  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

west.  In  1847  work  was  started  in  Vancouver  Island. 
In  1875  Brother  Alexis  was  killed  and  eaten  by  an 
Iroquois  Indian.  Within  recent  years  the  work  has  been 
developed  and  has  been  carried  on  with  a  fair  amount  of 
visible  success. 

Anglican  Missions. 

In  1820  the  Eev.  S.  West,  the  first  chaplain  of  the 
Hudson  Bay  Company,  began  work  in  the  Eed  Kiver 
Colony  near  the  site  of  the  present  town  of  Winnipeg. 
He  received  a  grant  from  the  C.M.S.  towards  the  education 
of  Indian  boys,  and  two  of  his  earliest  pupils,  H.  Budd  and 
J.  Settee,  were  eventually  ordained.  In  1831  an  Indian 
settlement  was  attempted  and  an  effort  was  made  to  reclaim 
the  Indians  from  their  wandering  life  ;  but  out  of  an  encamp- 
ment of  200  Indians  only  seven  could  be  induced  to  take 
part  in  cultivating  the  ground,  and  when  the  first  harvest 
was  reaped,  four  of  these  consumed  the  whole  produce  at 
a  single  feast,  reserving  nothing  for  the  coming  winter. 
One  of  those  who  helped  to  establish  the  settlement  had 
previously  eaten  seven  of  his  own  relations.  Notwith- 
standing, however,  the  initial  difficulties  which  were 
experienced,  the  settlement  proved  a  success,  and  a  well- 
ordered  Christian  community  eventually  came  into  existence. 
A  series  of  other  stations  were  established,  and  in  1872  it 
was  reported  that  no  heathen  Indians  were  to  be  found  in 
this  whole  district.  The  work  gradually  spread  towards  the 
west  and  towards  the  north.  Budd  was  ordained  by  the 
first  Bishop  of  Eupertsland  in  1850.  In  1865  there  were 
in  Eupertsland  and  the  North- West  Territories  5000  Indian 
Christians  and  1000  communicants. 

In  1851  work  amongst  Indians  was  begun  in  what  is 
now  the  diocese  of  Moosonee,  which  includes  the  whole 
coast -line  of  Hudson  Bay.  In  this  year  a  schoolmaster 
named  John  Horden  was  sent  out  by  the  C.M.S.  to  Moose 
Fort.  In  the  following  year  he  was  ordained,  and  in  1872 
he  became  the  first  Bishop  of  Moosonee.     Before  his  death 


CANADA  385 

in-  1893  he  had  seen  successful  missions  established 
amongst  all  the  Indian  tribes  within  the  limits  of  his  vast 
diocese,  and  the  beginnings  of  a  Christian  literature  in  the 
Cree,  Ojibbewaj,  Chipewyan,  and  Eskimo  languages.  All 
the  Crees,  three-fourths  of  the  Ojibbeways,  and  many  of  the 
Chipewyans  in  the  diocese  have  now  been  baptized.  There 
are  several  missionaries  at  work  in  connection  with  the 
Indian  reserves  in  Saskatchewan  and  Alberta,  but  the 
results  have  not  been  as  encouraging  as  they  have  been 
farther  north.  It  seems  well-nigh  impossible  to  induce 
the  Indians  to  work  for  more  than  a  few  weeks  at  a  time, 
or  to  acquire  habits  of  thrift.  The  most  hopeful  features 
of  the  work  are  the  Indian  boarding  schools — e.g.  the  school 
at  Lytton,  supported  by  the  New  England  Company 
(see  p.  56),  or  the  school  at  Battleford,  which  is  supported 
by  the  Government  but  is  carried  on  under  missionary 
supervision. 

In  1858  the  C.M.S.  began  work  amongst  the  Tukudh 
Indians  at  Fort  Simpson  and  a  little  later  at  Fort 
MacPherson  and  across  the  Eocky  Mountains  at  Fort  Yukon. 
Archdeacon  M'Donald  began  his  work  amongst  the  Tukudh 
Indians  in  1862  and  laboured  for  fifty  years  on  their 
behalf.  In  1865  he  was  joined  by  the  Eev.  W.  C.  Bompas, 
who  afterwards  became  Bishop  of  Athabasca,  and  later  on 
Bishop  of  Selkirk  (Yukon).  Within  a  few  years  of  the 
opening  of  the  mission  these  two  missionaries  baptized 
over  1000  Indians. 

In  British  Columbia  and  the  islands  on  the  Pacific 
coast  are  found  Indians  belonging  to  several  distinct  tribes. 
In  1856  William  Duncan,  a  schoolmaster,  was  sent  out  by 
the  C.M.S.  to  Fort  Simpson  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and  in 
1862  he  founded  a  settlement  at  Metlakahtla,  seventeen 
miles  south  of  Fort  Simpson,  which  rapidly  developed  into 
a  flourishing  community.  Difficulties  arose  between  the 
C.M.S.  and  Mr.  Duncan,  who  refused  to  allow  the  Holy 
Communion  to  be  administered  to  Indians,  and  eventually, 
in  consequence  of  a  dispute  between  him  and  the  Canadian 
Government,  Mr.  Duncan  withdrew  to  American  territory 
25 


386  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

in  Alaska.  Metlakahtla  became,  under  Bishop  Eidley,  the 
centre  of  a  series  of  mission  stations  for  work  amongst 
Indians.  Other  stations  have  been  opened  on  the  Skeena 
Kiver,  on  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  and  in  Vancouver  Island. 
The  Anglican  missions  to  Indians  and  to  the  Eskimos, 
most  of  which  were  inaugurated  and  supported  by  the  help 
of  the  C.M.S.,  are  now  supported  by  organizations  belonging 
to  the  various  dioceses  in  which  they  are  situated,  though 
the  C.M.S.  still  provides  some  financial  assistance. 

Distribution  of  the  Indian  population. 

The  Indian  population  of  the  Dominion  of  Canada  in 
1909  was  111,043,  which  represented  an  increase  of 
3406  on  the  return  for  1905.  Their  distribution  accord- 
ing to  provinces  is  as  follows :  Nova  Scotia,  2103;  New 
Brunswick,  1871;  Prince  Edward  Island,  274;  Quebec, 
11,523  ;  Ontario,  23,898  ;  Manitoba,  8327  ;  Saskatchewan, 
7971;  Alberta,  5541;  North-West  Territories,  21,362; 
British  Columbia,  24,871;  Yukon  territory,  3302. 
The  religious  census  was  as  follows :  Eoman  Catholics, 
40,820;  Anglicans,  16,590;  Methodists,  16,776  ;  other 
denominations,  3460;  pagans,  9622. 

The  largest  number  of  converts  connected  with  the  R.C. 
missions  are  found  in  British  Columbia  (11,470),  Ontario 
(6319),  and  Saskatchewan  (2939). 

The  Anglican  missions  are  strongest  in  Ontario,  British 
Columbia,  Manitoba,  Saskatchewan,  the  North-West,  and 
in  the  Yukon  territories ;  the  Methodists  work  chiefly 
in  Alberta,  Ontario,  British  Columbia,  and  Manitoba ;  the 
Presbyterians  in  British  Columbia,  Saskatchewan,  and 
Ontario ;  and  the  Baptists  in  Ontario. 

The  missions  receive  a  considerable  amount  of  help 
from  the  Canadian  Government,  especially  in  the  upkeep 
of  their  schools.  There  are  altogether  20  industrial 
schools,  57  boarding  schools,  and  231  day  schools.  Of 
the  total  number  of  schools  109  are  Roman  Catholic, 
86    Ai)}i:lican,    44   Methodist,    16    Presbyterian,    51    un- 


CANADA  387 

denominational,  and  2  belong  to  the  Salvation  Army. 
There  are  5323  boys  and  5156  girls  in  these  schools, 
which  contain  about  half  the  total  number  of  Indian 
children  of  school  acre. 


The  Eskimos. 

The  word  Eskimo  is  a  corruption  of  an  Indian  word 
which  means  "  eaters  of  raw  meat."  They  number  about 
40,000  and  are  scattered  over  3200  miles.  They  live  on 
the  seacoast  and  are  seldom  found  more  than  20  miles 
inland.  Their  language  has  but  few  dialectical  variations. 
Of  the  total  number,  11,000  are  found  in  Greenland  and 
13,000  in  Alaska  and  the  Behring  Straits. 

Greenland  was  discovered  by  Eed  Erck  and  his  Norse- 
men in  A.D.  986.  Soon  after  the  IN'orsemen  had  effected  a 
settlement,  mention  is  made  of  twelve  churches,  several 
cloisters,  and  one  nunnery.  We  have  already  referred  to 
the  good  work  done  by  the  Moravians,  which  ended  in 
1900,  when  they  handed  over  the  care  of  their  converts  to 
the  Danish  Government  Mission.  The  Danish  missionaries 
have  a  seminary  for  the  training  of  mission  workers,  and 
the  number  of  non-Christians  is  now  small. 

In  Labrador  the  Eskimos  number  about  2000,  and 
mission  work  amongst  them  is  chiefly  carried  on  by  the 
Moravians,  who,  in  addition  to  their  spiritual  work, 
endeavour  to  organize  trade.  Dr.  Grenfell's  Labrador 
Medical  Mission  work,  both  amongst  the  white  fishermen 
and  amongst  the  Eskimos,  and  the  hospitals  which  he  has 
established,  have  been  a  great  help  to  the  latter. 

The  first  regular  mission  to  Eskimos  in  the  Canadian 
Dominion  was  undertaken  by  Edmund  Peck,  formerly  a 
seaman  in  the  Navy,  who  began  at  Little  Whale  Eiver  on 
the  south-east  shore  of  Hudson's  Bay  in  1876.  After 
fourteen  years  he  started  another  mission  among  the 
Eskimos  on  Blacklead  Island  in  Cumberland  Bay.  The 
church  which  he  built  at  this  station,  and  which  was 
made     of     whale-bone    and     seal-skins,     was     eaten     by 


388  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

dogs.  His  work,  which  was  carried  on  under  great 
difficulties,  has  been  most  encouraging.  In  1892  he 
started  work  amongst  Eskimos  within  the  Arctic  Circle  to 
the  north  of  Cumberland  Sound.  In  1882  the  Eev.  T.  H. 
Canham  started  work  in  the  Mackenzie  Eiver  district,  and 
Archdeacon  Lofthouse  made  extensive  missionary  journeys 
among  the  Eskimos  on  the  western  shores  of  Hudson 
Bay.  In  the  far  north-west  the  names  of  Bishop 
Bompas,  Archdeacon  Macdonald,  and  Bishop  Stringer  are 
associated  with  successful  work  which  has  been  established 
amongst  the  widely  scattered  groups  of  Eskimos  to  be 
found  between  Alaska  and  the  Hudson  Bay  districts. 

Orientals  in  Canada. — Of  those  living  in  Canada  in 
1909,  who  numbered  in  all  36,591,  there  were  21,122 
Chinese,  12,003  Japanese,  and  3466  from  India.  Most  of 
these  are  in  British  Columbia.  A  limited  amount  of 
missionary  work  is  carried  on  by  the  Anglican,  Methodist, 
and  Presbyterian  Churches.  In  Winnipeg,  where  there  are 
1000  Chinese,  the  Presbyterians  and  Methodists  have  a  joint 
mission. 


XV. 
THE  WEST  INDIES. 

The  spread  of  the  Christian  faith  in  the  West  Indies  has 
been  conditioned  by  their  political  history.  The  islands 
which  have  been  long  under  the  control  of  Spain  or  France 
have  been  chiefly  influenced  by  E.G.  missionaries,  whilst 
those  which  have  been  under  the  control  of  England  or 
Holland  have  been  influenced  by  Anglican  and  Protestant 
missionaries. 

Spain  secured  Cuba,  Porto  Rico,  the  eastern  part 
of  Hispaniola  (San  Domingo),  and  Trinidad.  The  French 
secured  the  western  part  of  Hispaniola  (Hayti)  and  other 
smaller  islands,  e.g.  Martinique,  Guadeloupe,  Grenada, 
St.  Vincent,  and  St.  Lucia.  Great  Britain  at  first  occupied 
Barbados,  Antigua,  St.  Kitts,  and  Nevis,  to  which  Cromwell 
added  Jamaica,  which  was  captured  from  Spain.  By  the 
close  of  the  eighteenth  century  Great  Britain  had  taken 
Trinidad  from  Spain,  and  Grenada,  St.  Vincent,  St.  Lucia, 
and  Dominica  from  France.  St.  Vincent  and  Grenada, 
which  were  acquired  earlier  than  the  others,  are  more 
anglicized,  but  in  Trinidad,  Dominica,  and  St.  Lucia  Spanish 
and  French  patois  prevail  and  most  of  the  inhabitants 
belong  to  the  E.G.  Church. 

The  Spaniards  made  little  effort  to  evangelize  the 
Caribs  or  other  original  inhabitants,  and  the  massacres  and 
deportation  of  these  peoples  to  work  on  the  mainland 
forms  one  of  the  blackest  pages  in  history.  The  responsi- 
bility for  their  disappearance  rests  chiefly  with  the  Spaniards, 
though  the  French  and  English  are  not  free  from  blame. 
In  a  few  islands  some  of  their  descendants  are  still  to  be 

found.     Thus    in    St.    Vincent   there  are    about    200,    in 

389 


390  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Dominica  about  300,  and  there  are  a  few  in  the  Virgin 
Islands.  In  other  islands  there  are  a  certain  number  of 
inhabitants  of  mixed  Carib  and  negro  descent. 

Practically  the  whole  population  of  the  West  Indies, 
with  the  exception  of  the  Chinese  and  East  Indian 
labourers,  is,  and  has  for  a  long  time  been,  nominally 
Christian. 

The  work  of  evangelizing  the  negro  slaves  was  slow. 
It  was  left  almost  entirely  during  the  eighteenth  century 
to  the  Anglican  clergy,  who  were  not  as  a  rule  conspicuous 
for  missionary  zeal :  the  Wesleyans  and  others  who  desired 
to  share  in  the  work  were  in  many  cases  prevented  from 
doing  so  by  the  opposition  of  the  English  colonists. 
Despite,  however,  the  hindrances  which  were  placed  in 
the  way  of  missionary  enterprise,  by  the  time  that  the 
emancipation  of  the  negroes  took  place  a  large  proportion 
of  them  had  been  deeply  influenced  by  Christian  teaching. 
Professor  Caldecott  writes : 

"  It  stands  out  as  one  of  the  most  signal  triumphs  of 
religion  in  human  history  that  Emancipation  was  regarded 
by  the  freed  slaves  themselves  as  a  religious  boon  to  be 
received  with  pious  gratitude  and  celebrated  with  religious 
rites.  The  last  hours  of  slavery  and  the  first  hours  of 
freedom  were  spent  in  churches  and  chapels.  And  the  new 
centres  round  which  the  emancipated  rallied  were  neither 
ignorant  agitators  nor  firebrand  orators  holding  out  plunder 
and  rapine  as  now  within  reach,  but  the  missionaries, 
pastors,  deacons,  and  class-leaders  of  Christian  congrega- 
tions." ^ 

It  is  difficult  to  prevent  contrasting  what  happened  in 
the  islands  in  which  English  missionaries  had  been  working 
with  the  occurrences  which  took  place  in  Hayti,  when  in 
1791  the  French  Kevolutionary  Assembly  decreed  the 
emancipation  of  the  slaves.  When  the  news  reached 
Hayti,  1000  plantations  were  wrecked  by  the  slaves,  and 
in  the  conflict  which  ensued  2000  whites  and  10,000 
negroes  were  killed. 

^  The  Church  in  the  West  Indies,  p.  98, 


(THE   tVES'f   INDIES  361 

Eeference  lias  already  been  made  to  the  work  of  the 
Moravians  in  the  West  Indies  during  the  first  half  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  Between  1732  and  1739  twenty-two 
Brethren  died  in  St.  Thomas  and  St.  Croix.  In  1754  they 
occupied  St.  Jan,  and  soon  extended  their  work  over  the 
Danish  islands.  From  1764  onwards  they  opened  stations 
in  Jamaica,  Antigua,  St.  Kitt's,  Barbados,  Tobago,  and 
Trinidad.  They  are  now  also  represented  in  the  Leeward 
and  Windward  Islands. 

The  Methodists  began  work  in  1786,  and  by  the  time 
of  Dr.  Coke's  death  in  1813  they  had  obtained  11,000 
negro  converts. 

English  Baptists  began  work  in  Jamaica  in  1831,  and 
by  1842  their  church  members  numbered  24,000.  They 
have  also  missions  in  Trinidad,  the  Turk's  Islands,  San 
Domingo,  and  the  Bahamas. 

The  Scotch  United  Presbyterians  took  over  in  1847 
a  mission  which  had  been  started  in  Jamaica  in  1824. 
They  have  also  work  in  Trinidad. 

The  relative  strength  of  the  chief  denominations  in  the 
islands  belonging  to  Great  Britain  may  be  gathered  from 
the  following  estimate,  which  was  made  in  1897  but  which 
may  be  taken  as  representing  the  relative  numbers  to-day 
(the  figures  given  represent  communicants  or  full  members)  : 
Anglicans,  127,000;  Wesleyans,  52,000;  Baptists,  42,000  ; 
Presbyterians,  19,000;  Moravians,  19,000. 

It  is  not  possible  to  do  more  than  touch  briefly  upon 
the  missionary  work  which  has  been  done  in  a  few  of  the 
more  important  islands.  The  story  of  one,  however,  is 
with  a  few  exceptions  the  story  of  all. 

Jamaica  was  discovered  by  Columbus  in  1494. 
During  the  150  years  in  which  it  remained  in  the  pos- 
session of  the  Spaniards  they  exterminated  its  native 
population,  destroying  altogether  1.200,000  Arawaks  in 
it  and  the  adjacent  islands.  When  in  1655  it  became  a 
British  possession  it  contained  about  1500  whites  and  the 
same  number  of  African  iiegro  slaves.  That  the  B.C. 
Church  had  endeavoured  to  minister  to  the  slave  population 


392  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  when  the  English  captured 
the  island  they  found  there  several  negro  priests 
belonging  to  the  E.G.  Communion.  By  the  end  of 
the  eighteenth  century  the  slaves  had  increased  in 
number  to  300,000,  and  when  slavery  was  abohshed  in 
1833  the  number  of  slaves  who  were  set  free  in  Jamaica 
was  309,338. 

The  Jamaica  Expedition  organized  by  Cromwell  was 
provided  with  seven  chaplains,  whose  instructions  were 
drawn  up  by  John  Milton.  The  Slave  Code  of  Jamaica 
(1696)  contained  the  following  injunctions,  which,  however, 
were  seldom  carried  into  effect :  "  All  masters,  mistresses, 
owners,  and  employers  are  to  endeavour  as  much  as 
possible  the  instruction  of  their  slaves  in  the  principles  of 
the  Christian  religion,  and  to  facilitate  their  conversion, 
and  do  their  utmost  to  fit  them  for  baptism,  and  as  soon 
as  convenient  cause  all  such  to  be  baptized  as  they  can 
make  sensible  of  a  Deity  and  the  Christian  faith." 

In  1664  five  parishes  were  constituted  which  were 
served  by  five  ministers,  two  of  whom  were  Swiss.  In 
1703  the  S.P.G.  began  to  vote  money  for  the  support  of 
clergy,  and  in  1825  Dr.  C.  Lipscomb  was  appointed  as  the 
first  bishop.  Prior  to  his  appointment,  the  Anglican  clergy, 
both  in  Jamaica  and  in  other  parts  of  the  West  Indies, 
had  in  many  instances  been  men  of  unsatisfactory  character, 
who  had  but  little  influence  with  the  white  settlers  and 
were  not  interested  in  missionary  work.^  Until  the 
negroes  were  set  free  obstacles  were  frequently  placed 
in  the  way  of  their  becoming  Christians,  but  their 
emancipation  was  followed  by  the  conversion  of  a  large 
number.  In  1840  the  bishop  confirmed  nearly  9000. 
For  many  years  the  S.P.G.  continued  to  support  missionary 
work  in  Jamaica,  and  it  did  not  withdraw  till  1865,  when 
practically  the  whole  of  the  population  had  become  nomin- 
ally Christian. 

In  1825  the  C.M.S.  sent  out  two  catechists  and  their 
wives,  and  by  1840  it  had  work  at  21  stations  with  a  staff 

^See  The  Church  in  the  West  Indies,  by  Professor  Caldecott,  ch,  iii. 


THE    WEST    INDIES  393 

of  7  clerical  and  11   lay  missionaries.     It  finally  withdrew 
about  1848. 

Moravian  missionaries  were  sent  to  Jamaica  in  1754 
at  the  instigation  of  two  absentee  proprietors  of  estates 
who  desired  to  benefit  their  slaves.  At  the  outset  some 
success  was  attained,  but  during  the  first  fifty  years  not 
more  than  1000  persons  were  baptized.  The  Moravian 
missionaries  themselves  became  the  owners  of  slaves  and 
supported  themselves  in  part  by  their  labours. 

The  Wesleyan  Methodists  started  work  in  1789,  but 
were  bitterly  opposed  by  the  Planters.  At  the  close  of 
the  eighteenth  century  they  had  600  converts. 

Baptists    from  Virginia  began  work    in    Kingston   in 
1814.     This  was  transferred  to   the  English  Baptists  in 
1831.     A  Jamaican  Baptist  missionary  society  has  stations 
in  Central  America  and  in  several  of    the  West    Indian 
Islands.     The    unjust    disabilities  under  which    the  Non- 
conformist missionaries  worked  may  be  gathered  from  the 
Ordinance  passed  in  1807  by  the  Corporation  of  Kingston 
which  provided    that    they  were    to  conduct  no    services 
except  in  open  daylight  and  that  no  persons  were  to  lend 
their  houses  for  worship.     An  Act  passed  at  the  same  time 
forbidding  them  to  instruct  slaves  was  disallowed  at  home. 
The  Bahama  Islands  are  500   in  number  and  extend 
over  a  line  700  miles  in  length,  but  of  the  whole  number 
only  about  20  are  inhabited.    These  include  St.  Salvador,  the 
first  land  in  the  New  World  sighted  by  Columbus  in  1492. 
Nearly  the  whole  of    the  original   inhabitants,  i.e.    about 
40,000,  were  transported  by  the  Spaniards  to  Hayti  or  to 
the  mines  of  Mexico  and  Peru,  and  the    islands  became 
depopulated.     They  were  annexed  by  England  in   1578, 
but    were  not  settled    by  English  immigrants  till   1666.' 
During  the  two  following  centuries  missionary  work  was 
carried  on  amongst  the  negro  slaves   by  the  clergy  who 
were  sent  out  to  minister  to  the  Euglish  population.      In 
1843  the  Colonial  Church  Society  (now  the  Colonial  and 
Continental   Church  Society)  sent  a  lay-agent  to  work  in 
the  Bahamas.      It  subsequently  gave  some  assistance  here 


394  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

and  in  Jamaica.  In  1861  a  bishop  was  appointed,  the 
centre  of  the  diocese  being  fixed  at  Nassau  in  the  island 
of  New  Providence.  The  diocese  includes  the  Bahama 
Islands,  together  with  the  Turk's  and  Caicos  group.  The 
other  chief  islands  are  Andros,  Harbour  Islands,  and  Long 
Cay. 

The  Wesleyan  Methodists  began  work  in  1825  and 
eventually  occupied  five  islands.  The  Baptists  opened  a 
mission  in  1833. 

The  Leeward  Islands,  which  include  Antigua,  Mont- 
serrat,  St.  Kitt's  (or  St.  Christopher's),  Nevis,  Dominica, 
Barbuda,  Eedonda,  and  certain  of  the  Virgin  Islands,  were 
constituted  a  Federal  Colony  in  1871.  The  Leeward 
Islands  also  include  several  islands  belonging  to  France, 
Holland,  and  Denmark.  The  islands  contain  a  number  of 
Creoles,  but  8  5  per  cent,  of  the  population  are  descendants 
of  the  negro  slaves.  The  description  of  the  inhabitants  of 
the  Leeward  Islands  given  by  Bishop  Mather,  who  was 
formerly  Bishop  of  Antigua,  is  true  of  nearly  all  the  islands 
in  the  West  Indies.  After  referring  to  the  people  as 
intensely  impulsive,  easily  moved  by  religious  emotions, 
devoted  to  singing  hymns,  but  deficient  in  their  sense  of 
the  meaning  of  morality,  truth,  and  honesty,  he  wrote  : 

"  This  is  only  what  their  history  leads  us  to  expect  .  .  . 
the  heritage  and  taint  of  slavery  will  not  be  eradicated  for 
many  a  generation  yet  to  come.  Marriage  as  a  rule  was 
forbidden  to  the  slave ;  what  wonder  then  that  his  grand- 
children think  lightly  of  that  holy  ordinance  ?  (Two-thirds 
of  the  children  in  this  diocese  were  of  illegitimate  birth.)  .  .  . 
It  is  a  sad  thought  for  Englishmen  to  remember  that  the 
vices  and  faults  of  the  negro  are  the  direct  product  of  the 
slave  trade.  .  .  .  We  brought  the  negro  to  the  West  Indies, 
we  ill-treated  him  and  ground  him  down.  Surely  we  have 
a  long  debt  to  make  up  to  him  if  we  do  not  wish  him  to  rise 
up  in  the  Judgment  against  us." 

The  first  serious  attempts  to  evangelize  the  negroes  in 
Antigua  were  made  by  the  Methodists.  The  Speaker  of 
the    Assembly    in     Antigua    having    come    into    personal 


THE   WEST    INDIES  395 

contact  with  John  Wesley  in  England,  on  his  return  to 
Antigua  began  reading  Wesley's  sermons  to  his  slaves.  In 
1789  Dr.  Coke  visited  Antigua,  and  by  1793  there  were 
6570  Methodist  members,  most  of  whom  were  slaves. 

The  Moravians  began  work  in  1756,  and  by  1812  had 
reported  8994  members.  The  Anglican  Church  had 
chaplains  in  Antigua  as  early  as  1634,  but  comparatively 
little  was  done  by  way  of  ministering  to  the  spiritual  wants 
of  the  slaves.  Mr.  W.  Dawes,  formerly  Governor  of  Sierra 
Leone,  acted  as  a  catechist  in  connection  with  the  C.M.S. 
from  1813. 

By  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  efforts 
were  being  made  by  several  bodies  to  reach  and  benefit 
the  negroes.  Thus  between  1803  and  1815  the  number 
of  persons  baptized  by  the  parochial  clergy  was  2700  ;  by 
Methodists,  2000  ;  and  by  the  Moravians,  1300. 

The  Anglican  diocese  of  Antigua  (Leeward  Islands) 
was  formed  in  1842.  In  1844  a  lay  writer  in  Antigua 
spoke  of  there  being  then  in  the  island  "  an  enlightened 
and  evangelical  clergy." 

Barbados. — The  first  batch  of  settlers  in  Barbados 
(1625)  were  of  "such  a  temper"  that  their  first  chaplain 
is  reported  to  have  left  them  in  despair.  Later  on  it  was 
reported  that  the  clergy  who  endeavoured  to  instruct  their 
negroes  were  exposed  to  "  most  barbarous  usage  "  and  the 
slaves  to  worse  treatment  than  before.  That  the  opposi- 
tion to  teaching  Christianity  to  the  slaves  was  not 
universal  is  shown  by  the  wording  of  one  of  the  earliest 
Ordinances  relating  to  the  island,  which  reads :  "  That 
Almighty  God  be  served  and  glorified,  and  that  He  give  a 
blessing  to  our  labours,  it  is  hereby  enacted  that  all  masters 
and  overseers  of  families  have  prayers  openly  every  morning 
and  evening  with  his  family  upon  penalty  of  40  lb.  of 
sugar,  the  one  half  to  the  informer,  the  other  to  the  public 
treasury  of  the  island."  It  is  needless  to  say  that  the 
enactment  of  this  Ordinance  did  not  result  in  the  spread  of 
genuine  religion  in  the  island.  An  important  date  in  the 
missionary  history  of  Barbados,  and  in  that  of  the  greater 


396  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

part  of  the  West  Indies,  is  1710,  when,  by  the  will  of 
General  Codrington,  the  S.P.G.  was  enabled  to  establish  a 
missionary  training  college  for  the  West  Indies.  The  will, 
which  was  dated  1703,  reads: 

"  I  give  and  bequeath  my  two  plantations  in  the  Island 
of  Barbados  to  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Christian  Eeligion  in  foreign  parts,  erected  and  established 
by  my  late  good  master  King  William  the  third,  and  my 
desire  is  to  have  the  plantations  continued  intire  and  300 
negroes  at  least  always  kept  thereon  and  a  convenient 
number  of  Professors  and  scholars  maintained  there  .  .  . 
who  shall  be  obliged  to  study  and  practise  Phisick  and 
Chirurgery  as  well  as  Divinity,  that  by  the  apparent  useful- 
ness of  the  former  to  all  mankind  they  may  both  endeavour 
themselves  to  the  people  and  have  the  better  opportunities 
of  doing  good  to  men's  souls  whilst  they  are  taking  care  of 
their  bodys,  but  the  particulars  of  the  constitutions  I  leave 
to  the  Society  composed  of  wise  and  good  men." 

"  The  design  of  the  Bequest,"  as  explained  in  the 
funeral  sermon  preached  on  the  death  of  General  Codrington, 
"  was  the  maintenance  of  .  .  .  missionaries  to  be  employed 
in  the  conversion  of  negroes  and  Indians." 

Owing  to  insufficiency  of  funds,  the  first  building  to 
serve  the  purpose  of  a  college  was  not  erected  till  1742. 

Meanwhile  the  society  began  a  mission  to  the  negroes 
in  Barbados,  and  in  1712  they  sent  out  the  Eev.  Joseph 
Holt,  "  who,  being  well  approved  of  as  to  life  and  morals, 
and  appearing  with  due  testimonials  of  his  skill  in  Physic 
and  Surgery,"  was  instructed  to  perform  "  the  ordinary 
duties  of  a  missionary  "  and  "  to  instruct  in  the  Christian 
religion  the  negroes  and  their  children  within  the  Society's 
plantations  in  Barbados  and  to  supervise  the  sick  and 
maimed  negroes  and  servants." 

These  instructions  were  so  far  carried  out  by  Mr.  Holt 
and  his  successors  that  the  Report  for  1740  states  that 
through  their  labours  "  some  hundreds  of  negroes  have  been 
brought  to  our  Holy  Eeligion,  and  there  are  now  not  less 
than  seventy  Christian  negroes  on  those  Plantations." 
These  last  words  imply  that  missionary  work  was  by  no 


THE   WEST   INDIES  397 

means  confined  to  the  negroes  who  were  employed  on  the 
Codrington  Plantations.  In  the  same  year,  1740,  the 
society  ordered  that  some  of  the  negroes  should  be  trained 
to  act  as  schoolmasters. 

The  college  subsequently  became  a  most  important 
centre  for  the  training  of  missionaries,  catechists,  and 
schoolmasters  for  work  throughout  the  West  Indies.  It 
has  recently  been  expanded,  and  should  exercise  an 
increasing  influence  for  good  in  the  years  to  come. 

In  1824  William  Hart  Coleridge  was  consecrated  as 
the  first  Bishop  of  Barbados,  and  the  seventeen  years  of  his 
episcopate  witnessed  a  great  advance  of  missionary  work 
amongst  the  negroes.  Eeferring  to  the  service  which  he 
conducted  on  the  day  of  the  emancipation  of  the  slaves  in 
Barbados  (1838),  he  wrote : 

"  It  was  my  peculiar  happiness  on  that  memorable  day 
to  address  a  congregation  of  nearly  4000  persons  of  whom 
more  than  3000  were  negroes  just  emancipated.  And  such 
were  the  order,  deep  attention,  and  perfect  silence,  that  you 
might  have  heard  a  pin  drop.  Among  this  mass  were 
thousands  of  my  African  brethren  joining  with  their 
European  brothers  in  offering  up  their  prayers  and 
thanksgivings  to  the  Father,  Eedeemer,  and  Sanctifier  of  all." 

Eeferring  to  the  work  of  the  S.P.G.  in  Barbados  and 
elsewhere  in  the  West  Indies,  he  added : 

"  It  was  chiefly  owing  to  the  Society  for  the  Propagation 
of  the  Gospel  that  that  day  not  only  passed  in  peace,  but 
was  distinguished  for  the  proper  feeling  that  prevailed  and 
its  perfect  order." 

The  Moravians  began  work  in  Barbados  in  1765,  but 
after  thirty  years'  work  they  had  only  40  communicant 
members.     Later  on  their  work  developed  largely. 

The  Wesleyan  Methodists  have  also  done  good  work 
amongst  the  negroes.  According  to  the  census  return 
of  1901  the  members  of  the  different  Churches  were 
as  follows:  Anglicans,  156,000;  Wesleyans,  14,400; 
Moravians,  7000;  Eoman  Catholics,  800;  others,  4182. 


398  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  Windward  Islands  include  St.  Lucia,  St.  Vincent, 
Grenada,  and  the  chain  of  islands  which  lie  between  St. 
Vincent  and  Grenada  called  the  Grenadines.  The  total 
population  is  about  200,000.  In  St.  Vincent  and  the 
Grenadines  the  majority  of  the  population  belong  to  the 
Anglican  Church,  whilst  in  St.  Lucia  and  Grenada,  where 
the  population  is  largely  French  in  descent  and  language, 
the  majority  are  Eoman  Catholics.  The  S.P.G,  has  sup- 
ported missionary  work  in  these  islands  since  1712. 

The  Wesleyans  have  also  worked  amongst  the  negroes 
since  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century.  The 
Anglican  diocese  of  the  Windward  Islands  is  under  the 
charge  of  the  Bishop  of  Barbados. 

Trinidad,  which  was  in  the  possession  of  Spain  for 
300  years  prior  to  its  capture  by  England  in  1797, 
contains  the  descendants  of  many  Spanish  and  French 
settlers,  and  a  large  proportion  of  its  inhabitants  are 
members  of  the  K.C.  Church.  The  S.P.G.  began  work  in 
1836,  and  a  diocese  of  Trinidad  was  formed  in  1872.  The 
Moravians,  the  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland,  and  the 
Presbyterian  Church  of  Canada  have  also  work  in  the  island. 

A  new  missionary  problem  has  been  created  within 
recent  years  by  the  immigration  of  about  100,000  Hindus 
and  other  non-Christians  to  work  on  the  cocoa  and  sugar 
plantations.  In  the  Port  of  Spain  and  several  other 
centres  missionary  work  is  being  carried  on  amongst  these 
immigrants  with  considerable  success.  The  Anglican  work 
amongst  the  Hindus  is  superintended  by  the  Eev.  C. 
Kagbir,  himself  a  Hindu,  who  is  assisted  by  others  of  his 
fellow-countrymen. 

Tobago,  which  is  included  in  the  diocese  of  Trinidad, 
was  the  scene  of  Eobinson  Crusoe's  adventures,  and  his 
cave  is  shown  in  the  island.  His  man  "  Friday  "  was  an 
Arawak,  and  his  cannibal  enemies  were  Caribs.  Half  the 
inhabitants  are  members  of  the  Anglican  Church  and  a 
large  number  of  the  remainder  are  Eoman  Catholics. 
The  population  (20,000)  includes  East  Indians,  Chinese, 
French-Creoles,  and  Spaniards. 


THE   WEST   INDIES  399 

Apart  from  that  of  the  S.P.G.,  the  principal  missionary 
work  m  the  island  is  carried  on  by  the  Moravians,  who 
began  work  in  1790.  The  Wesleyans  and  Baptists  are 
also  represented. 

Hayti  (or  Haiti),  as  it  was  called  by  its  original  inhabit- 
ants, was  renamed  Hispaniola  by  Columbus.      Of  its  two 
republics  the  western  is  now  called  Hayti  and  the  eastern 
San    Domingo.     At  the    time  of    its  discovery    it   had   a 
population  of  about  2,000,000,  but  few  of  their  descendants 
remam,  the  population  consisting  chiefly  of  negroes      Of 
the  total  population  of  about  700,000,  about  525,000  are 
of  African  descent.     Of  the  mixed  races  about  125,000  are 
of  Spanish  and   50,000  of  French  descent.      The  Spaniards 
made  little  effort  to  convert  either  the  original  inhabitants 
or  their  own  African  slaves  to  the  Christian  faith  and  were 
content  with  a  superficial  profession  of  religion,  the  result 
being  that    the   greater   part   of    the   population   remains 
practically  heathen.     In  1861    an    American   negro,    the 
Eev.  J.  T.  Holly,  went   to   Haiti  with  a   colony  of  111 
persons  and  established  a  centre  of  missionary  work      A 
few  years  later  Mr.  Holly  was  consecrated  as  an  Anglican 
bishop,   and    the   work   was    placed   under  the   Board    of 
Missions  of  the  American  Episcopal  Church.     In  connection 
with  this  mission  there  are   13  clergy  and   22  organized 
mission  stations. 

Cuba,  at  the  time  of  its  discovery  by  Columbus  in  1492, 
contained  a  population  of  about  350,000.  By  1560  the 
whole  of  this  population  had  been  killed  or  had  disappeared 
The  negro  slaves  who  were  introduced  became  nominal 
Christians,  but  their  Christianity  has  never  been  more  than 
nominal. 

Bishop  Whipple,  who  visited  Havana  in  1871,  raised 
money  for  the  support  of  an  American  clergyman  whose 
primary  duty  was  to  hold  services  for  Europeans.  He 
however,  succeeded  during  the  nine  years  in  which  he 
was  in  Cuba  in  establishing  some  missions  to  the  negroes 
on  the  plantations.  Other  centres  of  work  were  established 
by  refugees  who  had  visited  the  U.S.A.,  and  the  American 


400  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Bible  Society  soon  began  to  send  colporteurs  through  the 
island.  In  1885  Bishop  Young  of  Florida  confirmed  325 
candidates  at  six  mission  centres.  In  1904,  after  the 
Spanish  government  of  the  island  had  been  overthrown, 
Bishop  Knight  was  consecrated  as  Anglican  Bishop  of 
Cuba.  The  work  which  he  superintends  is  carried  on  at 
57  mission  centres,  and  the  work  is  gradually  becoming 
self-supporting.     A  new  bishop  was  consecrated  in  1915. 

Several  other  American  missionary  societies  are  be- 
ginning to  organize  work  in  the  island. 

The  original  inhabitants  of  Porto  Bico,  which  was 
discovered  by  Columbus  in  1493,  were  soon  exterminated 
by  the  Spaniards.  Of  the  negroes  who  were  introduced 
in  their  place,  and  who  became  nominal  Christians,  very 
many  are  still  virtually  pagans.  In  1899,  when  the 
island  was  annexed  by  the  U.S.A.,  a  mission  was  started 
by  the  American  Episcopal  Church,  and  a  bishop  was 
consecrated  in  1902.  Work  has  already  been  started 
in  thirteen  centres.  Several  other  American  missionary 
societies  have  also  begun  to  organize  work  in  this  island. 


XVI. 

CENTRAL   AMERICA. 

Among  the  missionaries  who  have  laboured  in  the  West 
Indies  and  in  Central  America  the  Spanish  missionary- 
Las  Casas  stands  pre-eminent.  His  English  biographer  ^ 
writes  of  him : 

"  At  a  period  when  brute  force  was  universally  appealed 
to  in  all  matters,  but  more  especially  in  those  that  pertained 
to  religion,  he  contended  before  Juntas  and  royal  Councils 
that  missionary  enterprise  is  a  thing  that  should  stand 
independent  of  all  military  support,  that  a  missionary  should 
go  forth  with  his  life  in  his  hand,  relying  only  on  the  pro- 
tection that  God  will  vouchsafe  him,  and  depending  neither 
upon  civil  nor  military  assistance." 

The  one  great  mistake  of  his  life,  which  he  acknow- 
ledged afterwards  with  tears  of  repentance,  was  the  advice 
which  he  gave  to  the  Spanish  Government  to  introduce 
African  negroes  into  the  West  Indies  as  slaves.  His 
primary  object  was  to  secure  the  enfranchisement  of  the 
native  populations  in  the  West  Indies,  which  were  being 
reduced  to  slavery  by  the  Spaniards ;  but  he  soon  realized 
that  in  order  to  redress  one  evil  he  had  countenanced  the 
perpetration  of  a  far  greater. 

Born  in  1474,  he  sailed  under  Columbus  to  the  West 
Indies  in  1498. 

He  was  the  first  priest  ordained  in  the  West  Indies, 
and  worked  at  first  amongst  the  Indians  in  the  island  of 
Hispaniola  (Haiti).  He  accompanied  the  Spanish  troops 
in  their  conquest  of  Cuba  and  laboured  hard  to  protect 

^  See  The  Life  of  Las  Casas,  by  Sir  Arthur  Helps,  p.  vi. 
26 


402  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

the  Indians  from  their  cruelty.  After  the  conquest  he 
himself  settled  in  Cuba  with  a  friend,  and  became  the 
possessor  of  Indians,  whom  he  sent  to  work  in  the  mines 
for  his  advantage.  After  a  while  he  came  to  realize 
that  the  employment  of  Indians  as  slaves  was  wholly 
inconsistent  with  the  principles  of  the  Christian  faith, 
and  having  set  free  his  own  Indians,  he  sailed  for 
Spain  in  the  hope  of  persuading  King  Ferdinand  to  alter 
the  policy  which  he  had  adopted  towards  the  Indians  in 
the  West  Indies.  As  a  result  of  his  mission  he  was 
appointed  "Protector  of  the  Indians,"  and  returned  again 
to  Cuba.  After  vain  attempts  to  secure  the  enfranchise- 
ment of  the  Indians,  he  suggested,  as  a  solution  of  what 
appeared  to  be  the  insuperable  difficulties  with  which  he 
was  confronted,  that  each  Spanish  colonist  should  be 
allowed  to  have  twelve  negro  slaves.  Such  slaves  had 
already  been  imported  by  the  Portuguese,  but  the  sugges- 
tion of  Las  Casas  resulted  in  a  great  extension  of  the 
slave  trade.  Owing  to  the  incapacity  of  his  fellow- workers, 
his  efforts  to  organize  a  Spanish  colony  on  Christian  lines 
met  with  poor  success.  In  1522  he  became  a  Dominican 
monk,  and  devoted  his  time  for  eight  years  to  the  study 
of  literature  in  St.  Domingo. 

In  1536  Las  Casas  arrived  in  Guatemala,  after  spend- 
ing some  time  in  Nicaragua.  He  was  invited  by  the 
Spanish  Governor  of  Guatemala  to  attempt  the  Christian- 
ization  of  the  neighbouring  province  of  Tuzulutlan,  the 
conquest  of  which  had  been  thrice  unsuccessfully  attempted 
by  Spanish  troops.  He  agreed  to  do  so  on  condition  that 
no  Spaniard  should  be  allowed  to  enter  the  province  for 
five  years.  As  this  missionary  enterprise  proved  eminently 
successful,  and  as  a  trustworthy  account  of  the  methods 
which  were  followed  has  been  preserved,  it  is  worth  while 
describing  it  in  some  detail.     Sir  A.  Helps  writes : 

"After  the  manner  of  pious  men  of  those  times,  Las 
Casas  and  his  monks  did  not  fail  to  commence  their  under- 
taking by  having  recourse  to  the  most  fervent  prayers, 
severe  fasts,  and  other  mortifications.  .  .  .  The  first  thing 


CENTRAL   AMERICA  403 

they  did  was  to  translate  into  verse  in  the  Quiche  language 
the  great  doctrines  of  the  Church.  In  these  verses  they 
described  the  creation  of  the  world,  the  fall  of  man,  his 
banishment  from  Paradise,  and  the  mediation  prepared  for 
him."i 

As  it  appeared  to  be  certain  death  for  a  Spaniard  to 
enter  Tuzulutlan,  which  was  popularly  known  as  the  Land 
of  War,  they  taught  the  poem  which  they  had  composed 
to  four  Indian  merchants  who  were  in  the  habit  of  trading 
in  the  country.  Three  months  were  spent  in  teaching  the 
Indian  merchants  to  chant  their  poem  to  the  accompaniment 
of  Indian  musical  instruments.  When  at  length  the 
merchants  were  received  by  the  chief  of  the  country,  they 
were  hailed  by  the  assemblage  to  whom  they  chanted  the 
poem  as  ambassadors  from  new  gods.  When  asked  to 
explain  the  meaning  of  the  poem,  they  referred  the  chief 
to  the  Dominican  monks,  whereupon  he  sent  an  embassage 
to  invite  them  to  come  to  his  country,  having  first  made 
large  sacrifices  to  his  idols  in  the  hope  of  securing  their 
presence.  The  final  result  was  that  within  a  year  the 
chief  and  a  large  portion  of  his  people  embraced  the 
Christian  faith.  The  story  illustrates  well  the  spirit  in 
which  Las  Casas  pursued  his  missionary  task  and  the 
methods  by  which,  when  he  could  free  himself  from 
Government  interference,  he  loved  to  attempt  its  ac- 
complishment. 

Eeturning  again  to  Spain,  Las  Casas  wrote,  and 
eventually  published,  a  treatise  entitled  The  Destruction  of 
the  Indies,  in  which  he  denounced  in  vigorous  language 
the  treatment  of  the  Indians  by  their  Spanish  conquerors. 
In  1544,  much  against  his  own  wish,  he  was  consecrated 
as  Bishop  of  Chiapa,  a  province  between  Mexico  and 
Honduras.  His  efforts  to  secure  the  enforcement  of  the 
new  laws  which  had  been  promulgated  in  Spain  in  favour 
of  the  Indians  made  him  so  unpopular  in  his  own  diocese 
and  in  Mexico  that  in  1547  he  returned  to  Spain,  believing 
that  his  influence  with  the  king  would  help  the  Indians 
"^  liife  of  Las  Casas,  p.  195f, 


404  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

more  than  his  actual  presence  in  their  midst.  Though 
residing  in  Spain,  he  continued  to  act  as  the  protector  of 
the  Indians,  and  at  the  age  of  ninety-two  he  pleaded  the 
cause  of  the  people  of  Guatemala  before  the  Ministers  of 
Philip  II.  There  were  others,  both  statesmen  and  mission- 
aries, who  made  repeated  efforts  to  improve  the  lot  of  the 
Indians  and  to  mitigate  their  oppression  by  the  Spaniards, 
but  the  name  of  Las  Casaa  occupies  an  unique  position 
amongst  them.  He  did  and  suffered  more  on  their  behalf 
than  any  others  of  his  contemporaries,  and  his  life  helps 
to  light  up  one  of  the  darkest  pages  of  history,  which  is 
filled  with  records  of  cruelty  and  crime. 

Indians  in  Central  America. 

The  population  of  the  seven  Central  American  States 
— i.e.  British  Honduras,  and  the  six  republics :  Honduras, 
Costa  Eica,  Guatemala,  Nicaragua,  Panama,  and  Salvador — 
is  estimated  at  4,270,000,  and  of  these  1,700,000  are  said 
to  be  Indians.  The  E.C.  Church  claims  three- fourths  of 
these  as  Christians,  but  this  is  apparently  an  overestimate. 
There  are  probably  nearly  500,000  Indians  who  have  not 
been  touched  by  Christian  missions.  These  include  whole 
tribes  amongst  whom  the  RC.  Church  has  no  priests. 

The  Central  American  Mission — which  in  1910  had 
28  missionaries,  about  70  churches,  and  1100  members 
— is  endeavouring  to  send  two  missionaries  to  each  non- 
Christian  tribe.  The  Moravians  are  working  in  Nicaragua 
and  in  the  Moskito  Reservation.  They  have  32  mission- 
aries and  about  1300  communicants. 

The  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary  Society  has 
work,  chiefly  amongst  Roman  Catholics,  in  all  the  Central 
American  States. 

The  greater  part  of  the  missionary  work  which  has 
been  done  in  the  past  amongst  the  Indians  in  Central 
America  other  than  that  done  by  the  early  R.C.  mission- 
aries has  been  done  by  the  S.P.G.,  but  the  total  amount  is 
exceedingly  small. 


CENTRAL    AMERICA  405 

The  Moshito  Shore,  on  the  Bay  of  Honduras,  which  was 
discovered  by  Columbus  in  1502,  was  first  settled  by 
British  adventurers  in  company  with  Belize.  In  1741 
George  ii.  appointed  English  Commissioners  for  this 
district,  but  in  1786  England  relinquished  it  to  Spain. 
Before  this  latter  event  missionary  work  had  been  started 
by  members  of  the  Anglican  Church  amongst  the  Indians 
who  lived  on  the  Moskito  Shore,  and  in  1742  the  S.P.G. 
contributed  towards  establishing  a  mission  in  response  to 
an  appeal  received  from  some  of  the  Indians.  The 
English  Governor  of  Jamaica,  in  supporting  their  appeal, 
urged  that  "  those  Indians,  besides  the  claim  they  have  in 
common  with  other  savages  to  the  charity  of  the  society, 
have  a  demand  in  justice  upon  the  nation.  As  they  have 
learned  most  of  their  vices,  particularly  cheating  and 
drinking,  from  the  Enghsh,  they  ought  in  recompense  to 
receive  some  good  and  learn  some  virtue  and  religion  too." 
In  1747  Nathan  Price,  a  former  Fellow  of  Harvard 
College,  New  England,  having  been  ordained  by  the  Bishop 
of  London,  began  work  amongst  them,  but  he  died  in  the 
following  year.  Mr.  Warren,  who  began  work  in  1769, 
baptized  about  100  Indians  and  Mestizos,  who  included 
the  Moskito  king  and  queen  and  three  or  four  of  their  sons. 

Mr.  Stanford,  a  few  years  later,  baptized  120  Indians 
and  negroes.  The  Spaniards  eventually  ousted  the  mission- 
aries and  put  an  end  to  their  work.  In  1840  an  applica- 
tion for  missionaries  was  received  by  the  S.P.G.,  but  it 
proved  impossible  to  make  any  response.  In  1848  the 
young  king  of  the  Moskitos  was  confirmed  by  the  Bishop 
of  Jamaica.  A  large  portion  of  the  Moskito  territory  has 
now  been  absorbed  in  the  republic  of  Nicaragua,  and  some 
missionary  work  has  been  done  at  Eama.  The  Anghcan 
Church  is  also  represented  at  Greytown. 

In  British  Honduras  British  adventurers  from  Jamaica 
settled  about  1638.  In  1862  Belize,  as  the  settlement 
had  hitherto  been  called,  became  the  colony  of  British 
Honduras.  In  1776  the  Eev.  E.  Shaw,  a  representative 
of  the  S.P.G.,  started  work  amongst  the  English  settlers, 


406  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

but  very  little  was  done  for  the  Indians  till  1836,  when 
a  school  for  their  children  was  erected  at  Belize.  In  1891 
an  Anglican  Bishop  of  Honduras  was  appointed.  In  1894 
a  mission  to  the  Caribs  was  started  at  Stann  Creek. 

In  Panama  a  large  number  of  West  Indian  labourers 
have  been  employed,  who  are  all  nominal  Christians. 

Guatemala  was  annexed  to  the  Crown  of  Spain  in  1523. 
In  1536  Las  Casas  reached  Guatemala  from  Nicaragua 
and  helped  to  organize  missionary  work  amongst  the 
Indians. 

Its  subsequent  religious  history  has  been  similar  to 
that  of  Mexico  and  of  Central  America.  Protestant 
Missions  are  carried  on  by  American  Presbyterians,  by  the 
Central  American  Mission,  and  by  the  Pentecost  Bands. 

In  Costa  Eica  Protestant  Missions  are  represented  by 
the  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary  Society,  the  Central 
America  Missionary  Society,  and  the  Jamaica  Baptist 
Missionary  Society. 

Mexico. 

When  Cortes,  the  conqueror  of  Mexico,  interviewed  the 
Mexican  ruler  Montezuma,  he  declared  that  his  object, 
and  that  of  his  fellow-countrymen,  was  to  spread  the  light 
of  Christianity  far  abroad  and  to  open  to  the  people  a  full 
participation  in  the  blessings  which  it  would  bring. 
Eeferring  to  the  siege  of  the  city  of  Mexico,  which  took 
place  in  1521,  his  biographer  writes: 

"  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  Cortds,  with  every  other 
man  in  his  army,  felt  he  was  engaged  in  a  holy  crusade,  and 
that,  independently  of  personal  considerations,  he  could  not 
serve  Heaven  better  than  by  planting  the  Cross  on  the 
blood-stained  towers  of  the  heathen  metropolis."  ^ 

This  belief,  whilst  it  does  not  excuse  the  countless 
atrocities  and  massacres  which  accompanied  the  conquest 
and  settlement  of  Mexico,  enables  us  to  acquit  the  con- 
querors of  conscious  hypocrisy. 

^  Conquest  of  Mexico,  by  W.  H.  Prescott,  bk,  vi.  ch.  iii. 


CENTRAL   AMERICA  407 

The  judgment  which  Prescofct  passes  upon  Cortt^s 
might  be  passed  upon  many  of  the  conquerors  of  South 
America  and  the  West  Indies.     He  writes : 

"When  we  see  the  hand  red  with  the  blood  of  the 
wretched  native  raised  to  invoke  the  blessing  of  Heaven  on 
the  cause  which  it  maintains,  we  experience  something  like 
a  sensation  of  disgust  at  the  act,  and  a  doubt  of  its  sincerity. 
But  this  is  unjust.  We  should  throw  ourselves  back  into 
the  age — the  age  of  the  Crusades.  .  .  .  Whoever  has  read 
the  correspondence  of  Cortes  .  .  .  will  hardly  doubt  that 
he  would  have  been  among  the  first  to  lay  down  his  life  for 
the  faith.  He  more  than  once  perilled  life  and  fortune  and 
the  success  of  his  whole  enterprise  by  the  premature  and 
most  impolitic  manner  in  which  he  would  have  forced  con- 
version on  the  natives.  To  the  more  rational  spirit  of  the 
present  day  it  may  seem  difficult  to  reconcile  gross  devia- 
tions from  morals  with  such  devotion  to  the  cause  of 
religion.  But  the  religion  taught  in  that  day  was  one  of 
form  and  elaborate  ceremony."^ 

Throughout  Mexico  the  work  of  conversion  was  as 
rapid  as  it  was  superficial.  Twelve  Franciscan  friars 
arrived  in  1524.  Nine  years  later  one  of  their  number 
declared  that  nine  million  converts  had  been  received  into 
the  Christian  fold,  a  number  which  was  probably  in  excess 
of  the  total  population. 

Helps,  referring  to  the  success  attained  by  the 
Franciscan  missionaries  as  described  by  the  Bishop  of 
Mexico  in  1531,  wrote : 

"Five  hundred  temples  have  been  thrown  down,  and 
20,000  idols  broken  in  pieces  or  burnt.  In  place  of  these 
temples  have  arisen  churches,  oratories,  and  hermitages. 
But  as  the  good  bishop  says,  that  which  causes  more 
admiration  is  that  whereas  they  were  accustomed  each  year 
in  this  city  of  Mexico  to  sacrifice  to  idols  more  than  20,000 
hearts  of  young  men  and  young  women,  now  all  those 
hearts  are  offered  up,  with  innumerable  sacrifices  of  praise, 
not  to  the  Devil  but  to  the  Most  High  God."  ^ 

^  Ihid.  bk.  vil  ch.  v. 

*  The  Spanish  Conquests  in  America,  vol.  iii.  p.  300. 


408  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  lapse  of  centuries  has  brought  little  or  no  im- 
provement in  the  religious  ideals  or  practices  of  the 
Mexicans.  Abbe  Dominic,  chaplain  to  the  Emperor 
Maximilian,  said  that  Mexican  Christianity  was,  and  had 
been  from  the  beginning  of  the  Spanish  conquest,  a  baptized 
heathenism. 

The  Presbyterian  Church  U.S.A.  North,  the  A.M.E.C., 
the  A.B.C.F.M.,  and  several  smaller  missionary  bodies 
support  work  amongst  people  all  of  whom  are  nominally 
Christian. 

In  1869  the  Eev.  H.  A.  Eiley  of  the  American  Pro- 
testant Episcopal  Church  arrived  in  Mexico.  About  this 
time  several  Eoman  priests  had  seceded  or  been  driven  out 
from  their  Church,  and  these,  with  the  help  of  Mr.  Eiley, 
formed  a  congregation  and  began  to  organize  missionary 
work  in  different  parts  of  Mexico.  Mr.  Eiley  was  conse- 
crated as  Bishop  in  1879,  but  resigned  in  1884.  The 
Eev.  H.  D.  Aves  was  consecrated  in  1904.  Work  is 
carried  on  at  about  60  different  centres,  and  the  number 
of  baptized  Christians  is  about  3500.  The  work  is  carried 
on  amongst  English,  Mexicans,  and  Indians. 


XVII. 
SOUTH  AMERICA. 

The  population  of  South  America  to-day  is  reckoned  at 
about  50,000,000,  of  whom  30,000,000  are  aboriginals 
or  of  mixed  descent.  The  population  of  the  several  states 
is  as  follows  :  Brazil,  20,515,000  ;  Argentine,  6,989,023  ; 
Peru,  4,500,000;  Colombia,  4,320,000  ;  Chili,  3,500,000  ; 
Venezuela,  2,685,606;  Bolivia,  2,267,935;  Ecuador, 
1,500,000  ;  Uruguay,  1,112,000,  and  Paraguay,  800,000. 

It  is  not  possible  within  the  limits  of  our  space  to 
provide  even  an  outline  sketch  of  the  conquest  of  South 
America  by  Spain  and  Portugal  in  the  sixteenth  century, 
nor  to  give  in  any  detail  an  account  of  the  nominal  spread 
of  the  Christian  faith  throughout  the  continent.  A  few 
outstanding  events  connected  with  the  latter  will  be 
found  under  the  different  provinces. 

To  the  student  of  missions  the  missionary  work  which 
was  attempted  in  South  America  during  the  sixteenth 
century  makes  sad  reading.  Apart  from  that  which  waa 
done  by  the  Jesuits,  who  were  expelled  in  1760,  it  was, 
with  few  exceptions,  founded  upon  physical  force  and  of 
a  wholly  superficial  character,  the  result  being  that  after 
three  centuries  of  nominal  Christianity  any  conversion  of 
its  peoples  which  will  involve  the  practice  of  the  elementary 
teaching  of  Christianity  lies  still  in  the  seemingly  distant 
future.  The  religious  conditions  which  prevail  in  the 
different  states  of  South  and  Central  America  differ  to  a 
certain  degree,  but  what  is  true  of  one  state  is  as  a 
general  rule  true  of  the  country  as  a  whole. 

We  realize  and  we  thank  God  for  the  good  work 
which  E.C.  missions  have  done  and  are  doing  in  many 

409 


410  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

parts  of  the  world,  but  our  appreciation  of  this  cannot 
blind  our  eyes  to  the  fact  that  in  Central  and  South 
America  the  missions  of  the  E.G.  Church  have  proved  an 
almost  complete  failure.  We  will  quote  the  words  of  a 
few  E.C.  writers,  all  of  whom  would  presumably  be  pre- 
judiced in  favour  of  the  work  which  is  now  being  carried 
on  by  their  Church. 

Cardinal  Vaughan,  after  visiting  South  America,  wrote 
thus  of  what  he  saw  in  New  Granada : 

"  The  monks  are  in  the  lowest  state  of  degradation,  and 
the  suppression  of  them  would  be  an  act  of  Divine  favour.  .  .  . 
Priests  scandalize  the  people  much  by  cock-fighting.  I  have 
been  several  times  told  of  priests  taking  their  cocks  into  the 
sacristy,  hurrying  disrespectfully  through  their  mass,  and 
going  straight  off  from  the  altar  to  the  cock-pit.  They  are 
great  gamblers."  ^ 

The  Archbishop  of  Caracas  and  Venezuela,  in  a  pastoral 
letter  published  in  a  leading  newspaper  of  Caracas,  writes : 

"  The  clergy  have  fallen  into  profound  contempt  because 
of  events  which  have  placed  them  on  the  declivity  which 
leads  to  all  manner  of  failure.  There  are  no  calls  for  the 
clergy,  and  this  contempt  for  them,  so  general,  is  one  cause 
for  this  lack.  Impotence,  sterility,  decadence,  moral  and 
spiritual  .  .  .  these  form  the  true  and  striking  picture 
presented  to  all  who  deign  for  a  moment  to  contemplate 
it.  .  .  .  Why  does  ignorance  of  religion  continue  to  brutalize 
and  degrade  more  and  more  these  people  ?  Why  exist  so 
many  parishes  which  are  true  cemeteries  of  souls  dead  to 
God? "2 

Father  Sherman,  a  E.C.  priest,  son  of  the  famous 
General  Sherman  of  the  U.S.A.,  said,  after  visiting  Porto 
Eico: 

"Eeligion  is  dead  on  the  island.  Whether  it  can  be 
revived  as  a  living  influence  is  highly  problematical.  .  .  . 
The  non-observance  of  the  sanctity  of  Sunday,  the  number  of 
illegitimate  children  exceeding  that  of  the  legitimate,  the  fact 

^  Life  of  Cardinal  Herbert  Faughan,  by  Cox,  p.  125. 
2  "El  Constitucioiial,"  December  7,  1908,   quoted  in  South  American 
Problems,  by  Speer,  p.  162. 


SOUTH    AMERICA  411 

that  concubinage  is  said  to  be  common  and  is  not  sufficiently 
discountenanced,  either  legally  or  socially  .  .  .  the  prevail- 
ing distrust  of  the  priesthood,  among  whom  concubinage  is 
the  rule  and  not  the  exception,  the  decreasing  influence  of 
religion,  the  ethical  status  of  the  Eoman  Church,  sunk  lower 
oftentimes  than  the  atheism  which  surrounds  it,  such  are 
the  dark  lines  which  portray  the  condition  of  that  portion 
of  America  which  is  under  undisputed  Eoman  sway."  ^ 

To  the  above  witnesses  we  will  add  one  more,  whose 
name  will  carry  equal  weight  in  England  and  America. 
Sir  James  (now  Lord)  Bryce  writes  of  South  America  as 
a  whole : 

"  Another  fact  strikes  the  traveller  with  surprise.  Both 
the  intellectual  and  the  ethical  standards  of  conduct  of  these 
countries  seem  to  be  entirely  divorced  from  religion.  The 
women  are  almost  universally  the  '  practising '  Catholics,  and 
so  are  the  peasantry,  though  the  Christianity  of  the  Indians 
bears  only  a  distant  resemblance  to  that  of  Europe.  But 
men  of  the  upper  or  educated  class  appear  wholly  indifferent 
to  theology  and  to  Christian  worship.  It  has  no  interest  for 
them.  They  are  seldom  actively  hostile  to  Christianity, 
much  less  are  they  offensive  when  they  speak  of  it,  but  they 
think  it  does  not  concern  them,  and  may  be  left  to  women 
and  peasants.  ...  In  the  more  advanced  parts  of  South 
America  it  seems  to  be  regarded  merely  as  a  harmless  Old 
World  affair  which  belongs  to  a  past  order  of  things  just 
as  much  as  does  the  rule  of  Spain,  but  which  may,  so  long 
as  it  does  not  interfere  with  politics,  be  treated  with  the 
respect  which  its  antiquity  commands.  In  both  cases  the 
undue  stress  laid  upon  the  dogmatic  side  of  theology  and  the 
formal  or  external  side  of  worship  has  resulted  in  the  loss  of 
spiritual  influence.  In  all  the  Spanish  countries  the  Church 
had  trodden  down  the  laity  and  had  taken  freedom  and 
responsibility  from  them  more  than  befell  anywhere  else  in 
Christendom,  making  devotion  consist  in  absolute  submission. 
Thus  when  at  last  her  sway  vanished,  her  moral  influence 
vanished  with  it.  This  absence  of  a  religious  foundation  for 
thought  and  conduct  is  a  grave  misfortune  for  Latin 
America."  ^ 

1  Quoted  by  Bishop  Kinsolving  in  The  East  and  The  West,  April  1903. 

2  South  America,  Observations  and  Impressions,  by  Sir  James  Bryce,  p. 
582  f. 


412  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

It  would  be  easy  to  quote  many  similar  testimonies, 
but  these  will  serve  to  indicate,  what  few  who  know  South 
America  would  attempt  to  deny,  that  the  E.G.  Church  is 
less  worthily  represented  there  than  it  is  in  any  other  part 
of  the  world.  Even  in  cases — and  thank  God  there  are 
many  such — in  which  the  priests  are  men  of  unblemished 
character,  the  teaching  which  they  are  authorized  by  their 
superiors  to  give  to  the  people  is  far  removed  from  the 
teaching  of  the  early  Christian  Ghurch.  It  has  been 
said,  and  the  statement  is  by  no  means  unfounded,  that 
Mariolatry  is  the  practical  religion  of  South  America.  In 
the  wall  of  the  ancient  Jesuit  church  in  Guzco  are  cut  the 
words,  "  Gome  unto  Mary,  all  ye  who  are  burdened  and 
weary  with  your  sins,  and  she  will  give  you  rest." 

Bishop  Kinsolving  of  the  American  Episcopal  Ghurch 
in  Brazil  writes : 

"  In  the  interests  of  Mariolatry,  or  at  least  without  the 
protest  of  the  dominant  Ghurch,  there  is  in  South  America 
an  ethical  status  more  detrimental  to  pure  morals  and  more 
dishonouring  to  Ghrist  than  is  found  in  open  paganism."  ^ 

Our  object  in  referring  to  the  failure  of  the  E.G. 
Ghurch  in  South  America  is  in  no  sense  controversial.  We 
do  so  partly  in  order  to  appraise  the  missionary  methods 
which  were  adopted  three  centuries  ago  and  which  to  a 
large  extent  are  still  followed,  and  partly  in  order  to  justify 
the  attempts  which  have  been  made  within  recent  years 
by  Anglican  (i.e.  American  Episcopal)  and  Protestant 
missions  to  appeal  to  those  who  are  already  Christians  in 
name.  It  is  distressing  to  note  how  largely  the  European 
immigrants  have  drifted  away  from  the  E.G.  Church  of 
which  they  were  at  least  nominal  members  before  leaving 
Europe.  The  E.G.  Ghurch,  moreover,  appears  to  make  but 
little  effort  to  minister  to  their  spiritual  wants.  In  the 
whole  of  the  Argentine  there  were  in  1909  less  than 
1000  priests  for  a  population  of  5,000,000.  In  Buenos 
Ayres  one  parish  with  a  population  of  130,000  had  but 
one  priest  and  two  assistants. 

^Missionary  Review  of  the  World,  February  1914. 


SOUTH    AMERICA  413 

Brazil. 

The  state  of  Bahia  was  first  sighted  by  the  Portuguese 
explorer  P.  A.  Cabral  in  1500,  but  for  thirty  years 
afterwards  no  attempt  at  settlement  was  made.  In  1549 
John  III.  of  Portugal  dispatched  six  Jesuit  missionaries 
who  were  the  forerunners  of  the  great  army  of  Jesuits 
that  were  to  follow.  The  early  missionaries  had  to 
contend  as  much  with  the  wickedness  and  immorality  of 
the  Portuguese  adventurers  in  Brazil  as  with  the  ignorance 
and  ferocity  of  the  Indians.  Amongst  the  hundreds,  or 
rather  thousands,  of  Jesuit  missionaries  who  have  laboured 
in  Brazil  have  been  very  many  who  have  lived  heroic  and 
apostolic  lives  and  who  were  privileged  to  see  as  the 
results  of  their  labours  large  tracts  of  country  the  degraded 
or  even  cannibal  inhabitants  of  which  had  adopted  the 
customs  of  civilized  society  and  whose  lives  had  been 
transformed  by  the  Christian  faith. 

Missionaries  belonging  to  the  Dominican  and  Fran- 
ciscan Orders  arrived  later  and  shared  in  the  difficulties 
and  perils  which  accompanied  the  prosecution  of  the 
Church's  work  in  Brazil,  but  the  chief  credit  for  the  good 
work  which  was  accomplished  belongs  to  the  Jesuit  Order. 
One  of  the  greatest  of  these  missionaries  was  Joseph 
Anchieta,  who  reached  Brazil  in  1553,  and  laboured  for 
forty-four  years  as  a  pioneer  missionary  amidst  difficulties 
and  hardships  which  have  seldom  been  surpassed.  At  his 
death  in  1597  there  were  in  Brazil  alone  120  Jesuit 
missionaries.  The  Jesuits  were  the  only  missionaries  who 
uniformly  opposed  the  tyranny  of  the  Portuguese  and 
strove  to  protect  the  Indians  from  their  cruelty.  They 
became  in  consequence  extremely  unpopular  with  the 
governing  class,  and  after  being  twice  previously  expelled 
from  Brazil,  were  in  1760  finally  deported.  428  members 
of  the  Order  were  deported  with  every  form  of  insult  and 
indignity.  The  number  expelled  from  all  the  Spanish 
Indies  was  5677.  This  expulsion  of  the  Jesuits  was  a 
blow  to  the  well-being  of  the  native  population  of  Brazil 


414  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

from  which  it  never  recovered.  Mr.  Eobert  Southey,  in 
his  History  of  Brazil,  published  in  1817,  says  :  "  Decay  and 
desolation  succeeded  the  prosperity  which  had  prevailed 
in  the  time  of  the  missionaries ;  houses  falling  to  pieces ; 
fields  overgrown  with  wood ;  grass  in  the  market-places ; 
the  limekilns,  the  potteries,  the  manufactories  of  calico 
introduced  by  the  Jesuits  in  ruins."  It  was  charged 
against  the  Jesuits  in  South  America  generally  that  they 
had  been  mining  precious  metals  by  slave  labour  without 
giving  the  Government  its  share.  "  In  the  neighbourhood 
of  Lima  alone,  they  owned  5000  negro  slaves  and  property 
to  the  value  of  2,000,000  dollars."  ^ 

The  number  of  Indians  now  left  in  Brazil  is  between 
oue  and  two  million.  A  large  number  of  these  live  in 
remote  parts  of  Brazil  which  have  never  been  explored 
by  Europeans.  The  methods  adopted  by  the  Jesuits  in 
Brazil  and  in  other  parts  of  South  America,  and  the  results 
which  these  methods  produced,  are  well  summarized  by 
the  writer  from  whom  we  have  just  quoted : 

"The  Indians  were  easily  induced  to  conform  to  the 
externals  of  the  Christian  cult.  Wherever  the  Jesuits 
penetrated  the  aborigines  soon  adopted  Christianity ;  but  to 
hold  the  Indians  to  Christianity,  the  Fathers  were  obliged 
to  fix  them  to  the  soil.  As  soon  as  a  tribe  was  converted, 
a  rude  church  building  was  erected,  and  a  Jesuit  installed, 
who  remained  to  teach  agriculture  and  the  arts  as  well  as 
ritual  and  morals.  His  moral  and  intellectual  superiority 
made  him  perforce  an  absolute  ruler  in  miniature.  Thus 
that  strange  theocracy  came  into  being  which,  starting  on 
the  Brazilian  coast,  spread  over  most  of  Central  South 
America.  In  the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth  century  the 
theocratic  seemed  likely  to  become  the  dominant  form  of 
government  south  of  the  Amazon  and  east  of  the  Andes.  .  .  . 
The  Jesuits  gave  the  South  American  Indian  the  greatest 
measure  of  peace  and  justice  he  ever  enjoyed,  but  they 
reduced  him  to  blind  obedience  and  made  him  a  tenant  and 
a  servant."  2 

^  South  American  Hepublics,  by  T.  0.  Dawson,  ii.  71. 
8  Ibid,  i.  326. 


SOUTH   AMERICA  415 

Missionary  work  is  now  carried  on  amongst  the 
Bororos,  the  most  widely  distributed  tribe  in  Brazil,  by 
E.G.  Salesian  priests.  Remnants  of  the  Jesuit  missions 
are  found  at  Villa  Rica  and  elsewhere  in  North-West 
Parana. 

During  the  last  century  and  a  half  the  moral  and 
religious  conditions  prevailing  generally  in  Brazil  have 
become  worse  and  worse.     A  recent  writer  on  Brazil  says  : 

"  Of  the  .  .  .  educated  only  the  smallest  proportion  ad- 
here to  any  form  of  religion  whatever.  Statesmen,  lawyers, 
physicians,  army  and  navy  officials,  have  almost  to  a  man 
rejected  the  historic  Christ,  and  have  turned  to  infidelity 
and  Positivism.  In  one  city  with  a  population  of  35,000, 
after  careful  investigation  less  than  200  could  be  found  in 
full  communion  with  the  Roman  Church." 

He  quotes  the  R.C.  Bishop  of  Sao  Paulo  as  saying  in 
an  official  paper : 

"Brazil  has  no  longer  any  faith.  Religion  is  almost 
extinct  here."  ^ 

Father  Currier,  writing  in  the  American  Catholic 
Quarterly  Review^  after  admitting  the  desolate  condition 
into  which  religion  had  fallen  in  Brazil,  expresses  the 
belief  that  a  revival  of  religion  has  already  commenced.^ 

It  is  impossible  to  express  in  words  how  great  is  the 
need  of  such  a  revival. 

Protestant  Missions  in  Brazil. 

An  unsuccessful  attempt  was  made  from  Geneva  to 
start  missionary  work  in  Brazil  in  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  The  Protestant  missionaries  were  at  first 
welcomed  by  a  French  adventurer,  Nicholas  Durand  de 
Villegagnon,  who,  however,  turned  against  them  after  their 
work  had  been  begun.  The  missionaries  were  eventually 
expelled  by  the  Portuguese  in  1567  (see  p.  44). 

^  "  Rome  in  Many  Lands,"  by  Isaacson,  p.  160.     Quoted  by  R.  E.  Speer 
in  South  American  Problems,  p.  185. 
2  July  1910. 


416  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

In  1624  the  Dutch  conquered  Bahia  and  Dutch 
ministers  commenced  to  do  missionary  work,  which  was 
interrupted  by  the  capture  of  the  Dutch  settlement  by  the 
Portuguese  in  1654. 

In  1835  the  A.M.E.C.  sent  a  representative  to  Eio  de 
Janeiro  and  later  on  started  a  mission  in  the  Amazon  valley. 

The  Presbyterian  Church  (North)  of  the  U.S.A.  sent  a 
representative  to  Brazil  in  1859.  Its  work  is  now  carried 
on  in  seven  of  the  Brazilian  states,  the  most  important 
centre  being  M'Kenzie  College  at  Sao  Paulo,  which  has  500 
students.  The  Presbyterian  Church  (South)  of  the  U.S.A. 
started  work  in  1869.  These  two  bodies  amalgamated 
in  1888,  and  there  are  now  about  7000  communicants 
attached  to  the  United  Mission. 

The  A.M.E.C.  South  and  the  Southern  Baptist  Con- 
vention are  also  represented. 

The  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  of  America  began 
work  in  Eio  Grande  do  Sul  in  1889,  and  one  of  their  first 
missionaries  (the  Kev.  L.  Kinsolving)  was  consecrated  as 
Bishop  in  Brazil  in  1898. 

The  Church  of  England  supports  chaplains  in  several 
cities,  but  their  chief  duty  is  to  minister  to  the  English- 
speaking  inhabitants  of  these  cities. 

The  total  number  of  "Protestant  communicants"  in 
Brazil  is  about  30,000. 

Peru. 

In  1532  Francisco  Pizarro,  a  Spanish  adventurer, 
after  several  experimental  expeditions,  seized  and  eventually 
murdered  the  Inca  of  Peru,  and  in  the  six  following  years 
overran  the  whole  country,  seeking  for  gold  and  other 
treasures.  No  women  came  with  the  early  Spanish 
settlers  to  South  America,  and  a  people  of  mixed  blood 
soon  arose  who  now  constitute  the  greater  part  of  the 
South  American  population.  Priests  accompanied  and 
followed  the  Spanish  conquerors,  and  the  acceptance  of 
Christianity  was  soon  forced  upon  the  inhabitants  and 
towns  were  baptized  en  masse.     The  description  given  by 


SOUTH    AMERICA  417 

the  Mexican  historian,  General  Vicente  Eiva  Palacio,  of 
the  introduction  of  Christianity  into  Mexico  applies 
exactly  to  its  establishment  in  Peru,  and,  with  but  little 
modification,  to  its  establishment  in  several  other  states  of 
South  America.     He  wrote  : 

"  The  people  conquered  by  the  Spaniards  in  the  Indies 
did  not  have  even  a  remote  idea  of  Christian  doctrine  or 
Catholic  worship,  but  they  looked  upon  their  conversion  to 
that  doctrine  and  worship  as  a  necessary  consequence  of 
their  defeat  in  battle,  as  an  indispensable  requisite  which 
affirmed  their  vassalage  and  slavery  to  the  Spanish 
monarch."  ^ 

There  is  but  little  cause  for  wonder  that  countries 
which  were  thus  evangelized  should  remain,  after  the 
lapse  of  more  than  three  centuries,  in  a  state  of  paganism 
which  is  but  partly  concealed  by  a  thin  veneer  of  Christian 
profession. 

The  Inca  population  in  Peru  at  the  time  of  its  conquest 
by  the  Spaniards  has  been  reckoned  at  from  20  to  40 
millions.  Fifty  years  after  its  conquest  its  population 
had  been  reduced  to  8  millions.  According  to  the  last 
census  taken  before  the  declaration  of  independence  by 
Peru  in  1821,  the  Inca  population  was  608,999.  The 
decrease  of  population  affords  some  indication  of  the 
cruelties  practised  by  the  Spaniards  on  the  native  popula- 
tion during  the  long  centuries  of  their  misrule.  One  name 
which  shines  out  in  the  dark  background  of  the  conquest 
and  subjugation  of  Peru  is  that  of  St.  Francis  Solano,  who 
laboured  as  a  missionary  from  1589  to  1610.  He  is 
said  by  his  biographer  (Courtot)  to  have  converted  9000 
persons  in  a  single  day,  and  was  greatly  beloved  by  the 
Peruvians.  More  than  half  the  population  of  Peru  is  of 
pure  aboriginal  descent  and  retains  the  superstitions  con- 
nected with  its  ancient  sun-worship. 

The  A.M.E.C.  has  work  amongst  the  RC.  population 
of  Peru  and  a  few  stations  amongst  the  aboriginal  Indians, 

^  Quoted  in  South  American  Problems,  by  Speer,  p.  123. 
27 


418  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

but  there  are  few  states  in  which  so  little  missionary  work 
is  being  attempted. 

The  Eegions  Beyond  Missionary  Union  supports  work 
amongst  Indians  at  Cuzco  and  an  industrial  farm  in  the 
same  district. 

Until  1914  the  Peruvian  Government  discountenanced 
the  starting  of  any  Protestant  mission.  When  the  news 
of  the  atrocities  committed  upon  the  Putumayo  Indians 
on  the  borders  of  Peru  and  Brazil  reached  England  in 
1912,  an  attempt  was  made  by  the  Evangelical  Union  of 
South  America  to  start  a  mission  amongst  them,  but  the 
attempt  did  not  prove  successful.  A  Franciscan  mission 
has  also  been  attempted.  As  a  result  of  the  barbarous 
treatment  of  the  Putumayo  Indians  their  numbers  have 
decreased  during  the  past  century  from  100,000  to 
10,000. 

Chili. 

Chili  was  subjugated  to  Spanish  rule  and  Spanish 
Christianity  by  Valdivia,  one  of  Pizarro's  lieutenants, 
1540-45.  Spanish  priests  accompanied  Valdivia  in  his 
campaign  of  conquest,  one  of  whom  was  appointed  Vicar 
of  Chili  in  1546. 

Its  former  population  of  Araucanian  Indians  has  almost 
become  extinct,  chiefly  as  a  result  of  alcoholism,  which 
is  also  the  curse  of  the  whole  population,  especially  in 
the  towns  of  Santiago  and  Valparaiso. 

The  total  number  of  the  Indians  is  about  100,000. 
The  American  Presbyterian  Church  (North)  and  the 
A.M.E.C.  have  organized  missions  amongst  the  people  of 
Chili,  and  the  S.A.M.S.  has  stations  at  Cholchol  and 
Quepe  amongst  the  Araucanian  Indians.  The  well-known 
Mapuche  chief,  Ambrosio  Paillalef,  is  a  strong  supporter  of 
the  S.A.M.S.  Mission.  This  society  has  also  a  medical 
mission  at  Temuco.  At  Quepe,  which  was  opened  as  a 
mission  station  in  1898,  the  Indians  have  been  success- 
fully taught  farming  and  carpentering. 


SOUTH   AMERICA  419 

Bolivia. 

Bolivia  was  conquered  by  Pizarro  and  placed  in 
charge  of  his  brother  Hernando.  According  to  the  last 
census,  903,126  of  its  inhabitants  are  indigenous,  or 
Indians;  485,293  Mestizos,  or  of  mixed  Indian  and  white 
blood;  and  231,088  white.  The  Jesuits  established  a 
mission  to  the  Indians  on  Lake  Titicaca  in  1577.  They 
introduced  the  printing  press  in  order  to  provide  their  con- 
verts with  grammars  and  catechisms  in  their  own  language, 
and  did  much  to  civihze  and  raise  the  Indians.  They  were 
expelled  from  Bolivia,  as  from  other  parts  of  South 
America,  in  1760.  Of  the  Indians  in  Bolivia  to-day,  9  per 
cent,  are  "  in  a  full  state  of  barbarism,"  and  cannibalism 
is  reported  as  prevailing  amongst  them.  The  Indian 
population  is  steadily  on  the  increase. 

Of  the  total  population  rather  more  than  half  profess 
to  be  Eoman  Catholics.  The  rest  are  pagans,  with  the 
exception  of  about  4000  Protestants.  The  Baptist  Con- 
vention of  Ontario  and  the  Plymouth  Brethren  have 
small  educational  missions. 

Paraguay. 

The  first  Spanish  settlement  which  was  made  in  1536 
was  on  the  site  of  Asuncion,  which  is  the  present  capital. 
Its  people  were  regarded  by  the  Spaniards  as  the  most 
"  irreclaimable  "  in  South  America.  The  most  remarkable 
among  the  earliest  missionaries  was  the  Jesuit  Manuel  de 
Ortega,  who  died  in  1622,  after  thirty  years  of  laborious 
and  self-denying  toil.  Another  missionary,  Christoval  de 
Mendoza,  who  was  martyred  in  1632,  was  said  to  have 
himself  baptized  95,000  Indians.  Yet  another  martyr, 
Cyprian  Baraza,  is  reported  to  have  established  fifteen 
colonies  of  Christian  Moxos  and  to  have  baptized  with  his 
own  hand  110,000  converts.  To  an  Englishman,  Father 
Falconer,  belongs  a  share  in  the  honour  which  is  due  to 
the  pioneer  missionaries  in  Paraguay.     He  was  a  Jesuit 


420  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

"  of   great  skill    in   medicine,"  and   founded   a  mission  in 
the  Pampas. 

The  Franciscans  shared  with  the  Jesuits  the  perilous 
task  of  endeavouring  to  convert  the  Indians.  Seldom  did 
a  year  pass  for  many  decades  after  the  work  had  been  begun 
without  adding  to  the  list  of  martyrdoms.  One  instance 
may  suffice  to  illustrate  the  heroic  courage  and  faith  of 
these  missionaries. 

"  Gaspard  de  Monroy,  baffled  in  one  of  his  journeys  by 
the  obstinate  ferocity  of  an  Omagua  chief,  who  not  only 
rejected  the  gospel  himself  but  threatened  the  most  horrible 
death  to  the  missionaries  and  to  all  who  should  embrace 
their  doctrine,  ...  set  out  alone  and  entered  the  hut  of  the 
savage.  '  You  may  kill  me,'  said  the  Father,  with  a  tranquil 
air,  as  soon  as  he  stood  in  the  presence  of  the  barbarian, 
'  but  you  will  gain  little  honour  by  slaying  an  unarmed 
man.  If,  contrary  to  my  expectation,  you  give  me  a  hearing, 
all  the  advantage  will  be  for  yourself.  If  I  die  by  your 
hand,  an  immortal  crown  awaits  me  in  heaven.'  Astonish- 
ment disarmed  the  savage,  and  admiration  kept  him  silent. 
Then,  with  a  kind  of  reluctant  awe,  he  offered  to  his  unmoved 
visitor  a  drink  from  his  own  cup.  A  little  later  he  and  his 
whole  tribe  were  converted."  ^ 

The  ruins  of  the  buildings  erected  by  the  Jesuits  and 
their  converts  are  still  to  be  seen  in  Paraguay. 

The  Chaco  Indians,  amongst  whom  Anglican  and 
Protestant  missionaries  are  now  working,  have  maintained 
their  virtual  independence  ever  since  the  first  arrival  of 
the  Spaniards. 

The  total  Indian  population  of  Paraguay  is  computed 
at  100,000. 

The  Chaco  Mission. 

The  most  successful  mission  now  being  carried  on  in 

South  America  is  that  to  the  Chaco  Indians  in  Paraguay. 

In    the    region   known    as    the    Grand    Chaco,    which    is 

situated    in    the     republics     of    Argentina,    Bolivia,    and 

^  Christian  Missions,  by  T.  W.  Marshall  (1863),  p.  196. 


SOUTH    AMERICA  421 

Paraguay,  there  are  a  large  number  of  Indians  who  have 
hardly  as  yet  come  into  contact  with  Europeans.  Captain 
Gardiner  travelled  in  their  country,  but  was  not  himself 
able  to  start  a  mission.  In  1888  the  South  American 
Missionary  Society  undertook  work  amongst  the  Chaco 
Indians  in  Paraguay,  and  in  the  following  year  Mr.  W.  B. 
Grubb,  who  was  one  of  the  first  missionaries,  commenced 
a  work  amongst  them  which  has  been  fruitful  of  mar- 
vellous results.     After  twenty-one  years'  work  he  wrote : 

"During  these  twenty-one  years  the  average  mission 
staff  has  not  numbered  five  men  actually  in  the  field. 
Only  four  men  have  exceeded  ten  years'  service,  and  yet,  in 
spite  of  small  numbers  and  limited  means,  and  the  immense 
and  varied  difficulties  which  had  to  be  overcome,  I  leave 
the  reader  to  judge,  from  the  results  which  I  give,  whether 
or  no  we  have  laboured  in  vain,  whether  we  were  justified 
in  our  belief  that  this  degraded  people  could  be  elevated 
and  developed;  and  (most  important  of  all  in  our  eyes) 
whether  the  Lenguas  are  not  only  capable  of  receivino- 
Christianity,  but  of  forming  a  Church  which  shall  be  self"^ 
supporting  and,  in  its  turn,  missionary. 

"Where  formerly  it  was  dangerous  for  the  white  man  to 
go  without  an  armed  party,  anyone  can  now  wander  alone 
and  unarmed,  so  far  as  any  risk  from  the  Indians  may  be 
apprehended,  over  a  district  rather  larger  than  Ireland.  In 
a  country  where  fifteen  years  ago  there  weie  no  tracks  other 
than  Indian  footpaths,  resembling  sheep- tracks  at  home, 
now  about  four  hundred  and  fifty  miles  of  cart-track  have 
been  made  in  order  that  the  mission  bullock-carts  might 
readily  traverse  the  country.  Where  formerly  tribal  war 
was  common,  peace  has  reigned  for  many  years  over  a 
district  as  large  as  Ireland  and  Scotland  combined.  .  . 

"  Lastly  I  come  to  the  Christian  Church  as  ine  crowning 
effort  of  all  our  work.  Prom  out  of  a  chaotic  mass  of  savage 
heathenism  we  have  now,  by  the  aid  of  the  Divine  power, 
the  satisfaction  of  having  admitted  by  baptism  into  the 
Church  of  Christ  149  Lenguas,  and  of  this  number  there 
are  no  fewer  than  38  communicants.  There  are,  in  addition, 
at  least  an  equal  number  of  probationers  or  inquirers! 
But  these  figures  do  not  represent  the  total  extent  of 
Christian  progress.  Over  a  large  area  the  whole  tone  of 
the  people  has  been  changed  for  a  better,  the  gospel  message 


422  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

has  been  clearly  delivered,  and  we  can  afford  to  wait  in 
patience  until  the  Spirit  of  God  moves  them,  as  He  has 
done  others.  Our  business  is  to  plant  and  water  diligently 
and  faithfully;  it  is  God  who  gives  the  increase.  The 
Church  of  England  Prayer  Book  almost  complete,  together 
with  the  four  Gospels,  portions  of  the  Epistles  and  Genesis, 
have  been  translated  and  printed  in  Lengua,  and  also  a 
small  Hymnal  set  to  familiar  tunes."  ^ 

This  mission  is  now  advancing  westwards  and  north- 
wards from  the  river  Paraguay  and  is  starting  work  on 
the  western  frontier  in  the  Argentine  republic  among  the 
Tobas,  Matacos,  Chiriguanos,  and  other  tribes  who  are 
employed  on  the  sugar  plantations. 

Uruguay. 

Upper  Uruguay  and  the  far  interior  of  Southern 
Brazil  were  the  scene  of  the  best  work  accomplished  by 
the  Jesuit  missionaries.  Their  work  was  of  a  less  arduous 
nature  than  that  which  was  accomplished  in  Paraguay,  to 
which  reference  has  already  been  made. 

The  total  population  of  the  province  is  1,112,000,  of 
whom  one-fifth  are  foreigners.  In  1900  tlvjre  were 
73,000  Italians  and  38,000  Spaniards. 

The  Anglican  Church,  the  A.M.E.C.,  and  the  Lutheran 
Church  minister  to  Europeans  in  Uruguay. 

Argentina. 

In  the  eighteenth  century  Argentina  formed  part  of 
the  Spanish  viceroyalty  which  also  included  Paraguay  and 
Bolivia.  Its  present  population  of  nearly  7,000,000 
includes  a  large  and  increasing  number  of  European 
immigrants.  Argentina  was  the  first  of  the  Spanish 
colonies  in  South  America  to  vindicate  its  independence. 

The  A.M.RC,  in  addition  to  its  work  amongst  English- 
speaking  people,  has  missions  up  the  river  Parana  and  in 
several  other  districts.  There  are  about  30,000  Indians, 
^  See  An  Unknown  Peojile  in  an  Unknown  Land,  by  W.  B.  Grubb,  1911. 


SOUTH    AMERICA  423 

most  of  whom  have  come  from  Bolivia  and  the  Paraguayan 
Chaco  to  work  in  the  sugar  factories.  The  South  American 
Evangelical  Mission  and  the  Christian  and  Missionary 
Alliance  of  New  York  are  also  represented. 

A  new  mission  has  been  started  by  the  S.A.M.S.  in  the 
Argentine  Chaco  with  its  headquarters  at  San  Pedro  de 
Jujuy,  a  large  sugar  estate  to  which  several  thousands  of 
Indians  come  annually  for  the  sugar  harvest. 

Tierra  del  Fuego,  which  lies  at  the  extreme  south  of 
Argentina,  was  the  scene  of  the  most  romantic  mission 
which  has  been  established  on  the  continent  of  South 
America.  Captain  Allen  Gardiner,  an  English  naval 
officer,  in  the  course  of  a  voyage  in  1822  came  into 
contact  with  some  of  the  aborigines  of  South  America, 
and  after  attempting  missionary  work  in  Zululand  and 
New  Guinea  (see  p.  310)  he  succeeded  in  establishing, 
in  1844,  the  "  Patagonian  Missionary  Society,"  which 
afterwards  became  the  South  American  Missionary  Society. 
His  two  first  attempts  in  Chili  and  Paraguay  ended  in 
failure,  but,  undeterred  by  the  hardships  which  he  had 
suffered,  he  and  six  companions  sailed  for  Tierra  del  Fuego 
in  1850.  The  whole  party  were  left  to  die  of  starvation 
by  the  hostile  aborigines  in  the  following  year,  and  their 
bodies  were  found  in  Spaniard  Harbour  in  a  cavern,  the 
search  party  having  been  directed  to  the  spot  by  a  hand 
painted  en  the  rocks  on  which  Ps.  Ixii.  5—8  was  written : 
"  My  soul,  wait  thou  only  upon  God,  for  my  expectation  is 
from  him."  Almost  immediately  on  the  reception  of  the 
news  in  England  a  new  missionary  expedition  started 
which  established  a  station  in  the  Falkland  Islands.  In 
1860,  when  the  mission  ship  attempted  to  get  into  touch 
with  the  Tierra  del  Fuegians,  the  whole  crew  with  one 
exception  were  murdered. 

In  1868  Bishop  Stirling,  who  was  in  charge  of  the 
mission,  succeeded  in  establishing  a  station  at  Ushuwaia 
on  the  mainland,  and  in  1872  36  Tierra  del  Fuegians 
were  baptized.  The  station  Tekenika,  which  was  established 
in  1888,  was  for  many  years  the  centre  of  the  mainland 


424  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

mission.  This  has  now  been  moved  to  Douglas  Eiver, 
Navarin  Island.  Charles  Darwin,  who  had  visited  Tierra 
del  Fuego  and  had  tried  to  get  into  touch  with  its  in- 
habitants, had  expressed  the  confident  opinion  that  its 
people  were  incapable  of  becoming  civilized  or  of  being 
Christianized.  After  interviewing  some  of  the  Christian 
converts,  he  wrote  to  the  S.A.M.S. :  "  The  success  of  the 
Tierra  del  Fuego  Mission  is  most  wonderful,  and  charms 
me,  as  I  always  prophesied  utter  failure.  It  is  a  grand 
success.  I  shall  feel  proud  if  your  committee  think  fit  to 
elect  me  an  honorary  member  of  your  society." 

British  Guiana. 

British  Guiana  was  first  colonized  by  the  Dutch  in 
1580,  the  first  English  settlement  taking  place  in  1663, 
After  being  held  in  turn  by  Holland,  France,  and  England, 
it  was  finally  ceded  to  England  in  1814.  In  1831  the 
three  counties  named  after  the  three  rivers  which  traverse 
them — Demerara,  Essequibo,  and  Berbice — were  united  into 
the  present  British  Guiana.  Its  total  population  is  about 
300,000.  In  this  total  are  included  about  100,000 
Hindus,  10,000  Mohammedans,  40,000  pagans,  and 
130,000  Christians,  of  whom  about  40,000  are  Koman 
Catholics.  The  coast  districts  are  inhabited  chiefly  by 
negroes,  the  descendants  of  slaves  who  were  imported  from 
Africa.  There  are  also  a  large  number  of  Indian  and 
Chinese  immigrants. 

In  1735  the  Moravians  began  work  amongst  the 
negroes  in  Berbice,  and  later  on  amongst  the  Arawaks. 
Their  mission  was  totally  destroyed  by  revolted  negroes  in 
1763.  Another  mission  amongst  the  Arawaks,  begun  in 
1757,  was  finally  abandoned  in  1812. 

In  1807  the  L.M.S.  began  work  among  the  plantation 
slaves  on  the  invitation  of  a  Dutch  planter.  The  work 
rapidly  spread,  but  the  antagonism  of  the  slave  owners, 
which  was  accentuated  by  a  rising  of  slaves  that  took 
place  in  1823,  greatly  interfered  with  its  progress.     Never- 


SOUTH    AMERICA  425 

theless,  by  1829  there  had  been  established  seven  stations 
in  Demerara  and  nine  in  Berbice,  and  in  1838  the  number 
of  the  Christians  was  reckoned  at  18,000.  The  L.M.S. 
eventually  withdrew,  and  some  of  the  Christians  joined  the 
Anglican  Church,  whilst  others  formed  themselves  into  a 
Congregational  Union. 

In  1815  the  Wesleyans  started  work  amongst  the 
slaves  and  later  on  amongst  the  East  Indian  immigrants. 
The  "  Brethren  "  have  also  a  mission  amongst  both  negroes 
and  East  Indians  which  is  carried  on  from  Georgetown. 

In  1829  the  C.M.S.  began  work  amongst  the  Indians  on 
the  Essequibo  and  Potaro  rivers.  This  work,  which  attained 
considerable  success,  was,  however,  given  up  in  1856. 

In  1835  the  S.P.G.  began  work  amongst  the  negroes, 
and  the  Colonial  Government  contributed  towards  the 
extension  of  the  work,  which  was  superintended  by 
Dr.  Coleridge,  the  first  Bishop  of  Barbados.  In  1840 
Mr.  W.  H.  Brett,  a  young  layman  who  had  been  sent  out 
by  the  S.P.G.,  began  work  amongst  the  Arawaks  at  the 
junction  of  the  rivers  Pomeroon  and  Arapiaco.  He  was 
ordained  in  1842.  His  work,  which  was  carried  on  under 
great  difficulties,  proved  at  length  most  encouraging. 
Mr.  Brett  acted  as  a  pioneer  missionary,  and  drew  up  a 
grammar  and  vocabulary  for  four  different  languages — 
Arawak,  Acawaio,  Caribi,  and  Warau.  Owing  to  ill-health, 
he  was  compelled  to  return  to  England  for  awhile,  but 
on  his  recovery  he  went  back  to  Guiana,  and  after  a  long 
service,  extending  altogether  over  forty  years,  he  died  in 
1886.  He  was  in  a  true  sense  the  Apostle  to  the 
aboriginals  of  British  Guiana. 

Bishop  Austin,  who  was  consecrated  as  the  first 
Bishop  of  British  Guiana  in  1842,  was  Bishop  for  fifty 
years. 

The  centres  of  work  amongst  the  aboriginal  Indians 
belonging  to  the  Anglican  Mission  are  at  Mahaica  Creek 
and  Demerara  Ptiver  in  Demerara,  Cabacaburi  on  the 
Pomeroon  Eiver,  Bartica  and  Kupununi  in  Essequibo,  and 
Orealla  in  Berbice. 


426  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  E.G.  missions  are  in  charge  of  the  Jesuits.  The 
number  of  "  Catholics,"  inchiding  Europeans,  is  22,000. 

Work  amongst  the  Chinese  has  been  carried  on  with 
such  success  that  nearly  all  the  Chinese  immigrants  have 
become  Christians.  The  work  is  chiefly  supported  by  the 
S.P.G.     The  Baptists  have  also  two  or  three  stations. 

Archdeacon  Josa  writes: 

"  Ninety  out  of  every  hundred  of  our  Chinese  in  British 
Guiana  are  now  Christians.  What  kind  of  Christians  do 
they  make  ?  Not  rice  Christians.  On  the  contrary,  they 
are  most  liberal  contributors  to  all  Church  funds.  They  are 
upright  in  their  dealings,  and  a  Chinese  man's  word  is  his 
bond." 

French  Guiana. 

In  1560  the  Spanish  missionary  Sala,  together  with 
another  Dominican  Father,  entered  French  Guiana,  but 
both  were  immediately  martyred.  In  1643  French 
Capuchins  repeated  the  attempt,  with  a  similar  result.  In 
1639  the  Jesuits  entered  the  country  at  a  different  point 
and  evangeHzed  the  Galibis  tribe.  In  1674,  the  tribes  on 
the  coast  having  been  evangelized,  three  Jesuit  missionaries 
started  from  Cayenne  for  the  interior,  and  fifteen  years 
later  they  erected  a  church  on  the  river  Kourou.  In  1711 
it  was  stated  that  five  other  tribes  had  become  Christian. 
When,  however,  the  Jesuits  were  banished  from  South 
America  these  missions  collapsed.  In  1852  the  Jesuits 
returned  and  recommenced  their  work  near  Cayenne. 

The  population,  which  is  about  35,000,  includes 
10,000  French  convicts. 

Dutch  Guiana. 

In  Dutch  Guiana  or  Surinam  there  are  about  17,000 
"  bush  negroes,"  or  aboriginal  Indians,  about  50,000  negroes 
of  African  descent,  and  a  number  of  imported  Indian 
coolies.  Dutch  Guiana  was  acquired  by  the  Netherlands 
in  1667  and  its  present  population  is  about  86,000.     The 


SOUTH    AMERICA  427 

Moravians  ^  began  a  mission  in  1738  at  the  mouth  of  the 
river  Berbice  in  what  was  then  Dutch  but  is  now  British 
Guiana.  By  1748,  41  Indians  had  been  baptized;  four 
years  later,  chiefly  as  the  result  of  the  labours  of  T.  S. 
Schumann,  "  the  Apostle  of  the  Arawaks,"  the  number  had 
risen  to  266.  Several  mission  stations  were  opened,  but, 
partly  owing  to  the  nomadic  tendencies  of  the  Indians,  the 
work  failed  to  progress.  In  1754  the  Moravians  started 
work  amongst  the  negro  slaves  in  Paramaribo,  which  has 
since  made  slow,  but  steady,  progress.  In  1765  two 
missionaries  left  Paramaribo  to  start  a  mission  in  the 
interior  amongst  the  Saramaccas.  By  1818,  9  missionaries 
and  6  wives  of  missionaries  had  died  at  this  station,  and 
the  mission  was  eventually  abandoned. 

The  Moravian  Church  at  the  present  time  has  missions 
amongst  the  bush  negroes  along  the  Coppename,  the 
Saramacca,  the  Surinam,  and  the  Marowyne  rivers.  Work 
is  carried  on  at  31  stations  and  25  out-stations.  There 
are  27  ordained  European  brethren,  and  16  unordained,  in 
addition  to  8  ordained  and  10  unordained  native  brethren. 
The  Christian  adherents  number  30,000. 

Venezuela,  Colombia,  and  Ecuador. 

In  1545  the  Spaniards  began  to  establish  permanent 
settlements  in  the  interior  of  Venezuela.  Ecuador  was 
conquered  by  one  of  Pizarro's  officers,  Benalcazar,  in  1534, 
soon  after  which  Pizarro's  brother  Gonzalo  was  appointed 
Governor  of  the  province  of  Quito.  In  the  eighteenth 
century  Venezuela  formed  part  of  the  viceroyalty  of  New 
Granada,  which  included  also  Colombia  and  Ecuador. 
These  three  states  were  the  first  to  assert  their  independence 
of  Spain  in  1819.  In  these  states  there  has  been  less 
immigration  from  Europe  than  in  most  of  the  other 
states,  and  their  peoples  are  more  backward  and  more 
irreligious  than  any  others.  A  former  American  Minister 
to  Colombia  thus  describes  the  attitude  of  the  R.C.  Church 

1  See  p.  53. 


428  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

throughout  South  America  generally  during  the  eighteenth 
century : 

"  It  had  prohibited  the  teaching  of  the  arts  and  sciences, 
restricted  education  to  the  Latin  grammar  and  the  catechism, 
and  limited  the  public  libraries  to  the  writings  of  the  Fathers 
and  to  works  on  civil  and  ecclesiastical  jurisprudence.  It 
had  even  prohibited  the  study  of  modern  geography  and 
astronomy  and  forbade  the  reading  of  books  on  travel  .  .  . 
it  had  placed  under  the  ban  Bohinson  Crusoe,  and  there  had 
never  been  a  book  or  a  magazine  or  a  newspaper  in  the 
whole  country  that  was  not  conformed  to  the  strictest  rule 
of  the  Eoman  Index."  ^ 

There  is  no  state  in  which  the  RC.  Church  to-day 
has  exercised,  and  still  exercises,  a  more  complete  control 
than  it  does  in  Colombia.  In  the  Inquisition  at  Carthagena 
it  is  stated  that  400,000  have  been  condemned  to  death. 

"The  moral  conditions  are  the  same  as  elsewhere  in 
South  America.  The  control  of  marriage  by  the  RC.  Church, 
and  the  use  of  this  control  by  the  priests  as  a  source  of 
income  to  the  Church,  have  resulted,  as  the  priests  themselves 
admit,  in  the  failure  on  the  part  of  great  masses  of  the 
population  to  get  married.  Men  and  women  live  together 
with  no  marriage  ceremony."  ^ 

In  Colombia  there  are  about  250,000  Indians.  There 
is  a  small  E.C.  mission  amongst  the  Indians  on  the  Goajira 
peninsula  between  Colombia  and  Venezuela,  which  is  under 
the  charge  of  the  Capuchin  Fathers  in  Barranquilla.  In 
Ecuador,  the  population  of  which  is  about  1,400,000,  there 
are  about  400,000  of  mixed  blood  and  about  200,000 
"civilized  Indians."  Amongst  the  remaining  800,000 
Indians  the  E.C.  Church  has  a  few  missions,  but  the 
results  are  far  from  being  encouraging. 

"  The  Blessed  Peter  Claver "  is  regarded  by  the  E.C. 
Church  as  the  Apostle  of  Carthagena  and  Colombia.  He 
left  Seville  in   1610  and  laboured  in  South  America  for 

^  The  Colombian  and  Venezuela  Bejiuhlics,  by  W.  L.  Scruggs,  p.  128. 
-  South  American  Problems,  by  Speer,  p.  58. 


SOUTH    AMERICA  429 

thirty-nine  years.  According  to  his  biographers,  his  life 
was  a  constant  succession  of  miracles.  One  of  his  reputed 
labours  was  the  conversion  of  600  Englishmen  who  were 
captured  at  sea  and  brought  to  Carthagena.^ 

American  Presbyterians  have  started  work  amongst  the 
E.G.  population  at  Barranquilla  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Magdalena  Eiver  and  several  other  centres. 

In  Venezuela  the  U.S.A.  Presbyterians  and  the 
"  Brethren "  have  preaching  centres  and  other  work  at 
Caracas.  The  Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance  and  the 
South  American  Evangelical  Mission  are  also  represented. 
Of  the  total  population  of  Venezuela,  which  is  reckoned 
at  2,685,606,  90,000  are  returned  as  pagans. 

^  Christian  Missions,  their  Agents  and  their  Results,  by  T.  W.  Marshall 
(1863),  pp.  169-71. 


XVIII. 
AUSTRALIA. 

The  Australian  Aborigines. 

The  total  number  of  Australian  aborigines  is  reckoned 
by  the  Government  authorities  at  74,000.  Of  these, 
20,000  are  found  in  Queensland,  27,000  in  West 
Australia,  16,000  in  the  Northern  Territory,  7370  in 
New  South  Wales,  3500  in  South  Australia,  and  250  in 
Victoria.  The  appalling  rate  at  which  they  have  decreased 
may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  less  than  one  hundred 
years  ago  the  number  in  Queensland  alone  was  200,000. 
In  1837  the  number  in  Victoria  was  reckoned  at  15,000. 
The  total  number  of  those  who  are  "  living  in  contiguity  to 
the  settlements  of  whites,"  according  to  the  census  of  1911, 
is  19,939.  Hardly  more  than  6000  have  as  yet  been 
reached  by  Christian  missionaries.  Efforts  are  now  being 
made  by  the  various  states  to  safeguard  the  interests  of  the 
aboriginals,  but  it  is  doubtful  whether  a  further  decrease  in 
their  number  can  be  prevented.  In  1911  the  Government 
grants  amounted  to  £68,120,  and  in  addition  a  distribu- 
tion of  5000  blankets  was  made  to  the  aboriginals  in 
Queensland. 

Early  in  the  nineteenth  century,  Samuel  Marsden, 
a  chaplain  at  Sydney,  helped  by  Governor  Macquarie, 
endeavoured  to  protect  the  aboriginals  from  the  cruelties 
that  were  being  practised  upon  them  by  the  early  settlers 
and  convicts. 

In  1823  the  S.P.G.  signified  to  Mr.  Hill,  a  chaplain 
at  Sydney,  its  willingness  to  assist  in  establishing  a  mission 

430 


AUSTRALIA  431 

to  the  aboriginals  in  New  South  Wales,  but  nothing  was 
actually  accomplished.  In  1829  Archdeacon  (afterwards 
Bishop)  Broughton  put  before  the  clergy  in  Australia  the 
"  appalling  consideration  that  after  an  intercourse  of  nearly 
half  a  century  with  a  Christian  people,  these  hapless 
human  beings  continue  ...  in  their  original  benighted 
and  degraded  state." 

In  1825  some  L.M.S.  missionaries  who  came  from 
Tahiti  made  several  unsuccessful  efforts  to  establish  work 
amongst  the  aboriginals  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Sydney. 
Mr.  L.  E.  Threlkeld  printed  a  spelling-book  and  translations 
of  some  selections  from  Scripture  for  some  tribes  near  Lake 
Macquarie,  but  no  permanent  work  resulted. 

In  1830,  in  response  to  a  request  from  the  Home 
Government,  the  C.M.S.  sent  out  two  clergy  and  a  farmer, 
and  a  mission  station  was  opened  at  Wellington  Bay,  a 
Government  station  200  miles  from  Sydney.  Some  good 
work  was  done,  though  apparently  no  aborigines  were 
baptized,  and  in  1842,  in  consequence  of  difficulties 
which  arose  between  the  C.M.S.  and  the  Government 
authorities,  the  mission  was  discontinued. 

The  first  successful  attempt  to  start  mission  work 
for  their  benefit  was  made,  in  connection  with  the 
S.P.G.,  by  Archdeacon  Hale  of  South  Australia,  who 
started  an  aboriginal  settlement  in  1851  at  Poonindie 
near  Port  Lincoln  on  the  Spencer  Gulf.  Two  years 
later,  when  Bishop  Short  visited  it,  the  settlement 
consisted  of  54  natives,  including  11  married  couples. 
The  Bishop  during  his  visit  baptized  10  men  and  1 
woman.  A  period  of  sickness  (1856-58),  during  which  21 
deaths  occurred,  was  followed  by  financial  difficulties,  which 
for  several  years  interfered  with  the  development  of  the 
mission.  By  1863  two  natives  were  able  to  conduct  the 
Sunday  morning  service.  In  1872  Bishop  Short  reported 
that  there  was  there  "a  well-ordered  community  of  more  than 
80  aboriginals  and  half-castes  .  .  .  living  in  quietness, 
sobriety,  and  godliness,  employed  in  the  various  labours  of 
a  sheep  station  and  a  cultivated  farm  of  260  acres." 


432  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Many  efforts  were  made  from  time  to  time  by  Anglican, 
Presbyterian,  and  Wesleyan  ministers  working  amongst 
white  people  to  get  into  touch  with  the  aboriginals,  with 
varying  success.  Thus  the  Eev.  G.  King,  whom  the  S.P.G. 
sent  out  to  Fremantle  in  West  Australia,  reported  the 
baptism  of  ten  aboriginal  children  whom  he  had  been 
teaching  for  some  years.  Later  on  four  of  his  aboriginal 
girls  were  married  by  the  Bishop  of  Adelaide  to  four 
aboriginals  who  had  been  trained  in  the  Wesleyan  school 
at  Wonneroo.  In  1850  the  S.P.G.  helped  to  establish  an 
aboriginal  school  near  Albany  which  was  removed  to  Perth 
in  1859  and  to  the  Swan  Eiver  in  1876. 

In  1859  the  Moravians  started  a  mission  to  aboriginals 
at  Ebenezer  in  the  Wimmera  district  of  Victoria.  The 
mission  received  encouragement  and  financial  support  from 
Bishop  Perry  of  Melbourne,  and  in  1860  the  first 
convert  was  baptized.  Encouraged  by  the  success  of  the 
mission,  the  Presbyterian  Assembly  of  Australia  offered  to 
supply  funds  for  another  station,  if  the  Moravians  would 
supply  the  missionaries.  A  station  was  accordingly 
opened  at  Eamahyuk,  on  a  native  reserve  near  Lake 
Wellington.  The  first  convert  was  baptized  in  1866. 
Much  good  work  was  done  at  this  station,  which,  in 
consequence  of  the  steady  decrease  in  the  aboriginal 
population  in  Victoria,  was  eventually  abandoned. 

The  following  are  the  principal  mission  stations  now 
in  existence : — 

Yarrahah,  15  miles  south  of  Cairns  in  North 
Queensland,  founded  in  1892 ;  Truhanaman,  or  the 
Mitchell  Eiver  Mission,  on  the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria,  founded 
in  1905;  the  Boper  River  Mission,  on  the  west  coast  of  the 
Gulf  of  Carpentaria,  founded  in  1907;  the  Forrest  River 
Mission,  in  North- West  Australia,  founded  in  1913. 
These  four  missions  belong  to  the  Anglican  Church.  The 
Neiv  Norcia  Mission  in  West  Australia,  170  miles  north- 
east of  Perth,  is  managed  by  Trappists  belonging  to  the 
E.C.  Church.  The  Majwon  Mission,  founded  in  1891,  is  a 
joint  station  of  the  Moravians  and  the  Presbyterians ;  and 


AUSTRALIA  433 

the  Cape  Bedford  Mission,  north  of  Cooktown,  is  supported 
by  the  Lutherans. 

In  Victoria  the  Presbyterians  have  a  station  at 
Coranderoh. 

The  German  Neuendettelsau  Society  has  a  station  at 
Elim-Hope  in  Queensland  and  another  at  Bethesda  in 
South  Austraha.  The  Australian  Immanuel  Synod 
(German)  has  also  a  station  in  South  Australia  at  Nevj 
Hermannsburg. 

To  the  above  list  should  be  added  the  Moa  Island 
Mission  in  the  Torres  Straits,  belonging  to  the  Anglican 
Church,  which  was  founded  in  1907. 

The  inhabitants  of  Moa  Island  are  of  mixed  aboriginal 
and  South  Sea  Island  origin.  Another  Anglican  mission 
is  in  course  of  being  established  at  Groot  Island  in  the 
Gulf  of  Carpentaria. 

The  mission  at  Yarrahah,  which  is  in  the  diocese  of 
North  Queensland,  was  started  by  the  Eev.  J.  E.  Gribble, 
who  had  previously  interested  himself  in  the  welfare  of 
the  natives  in  West  Australia.  When  he  had  been  three 
months  at  Yarrabah  his  health  gave  way,  and  his  son 
undertook  the  charge  of  the  mission.  After  passing 
through  several  vicissitudes,  the  mission  is  now  firmly 
established.  The  Bishop  of  Carpentaria,  after  visiting  the 
Mitchell  Eiver  Mission  in  1913,  wrote  concerning  it  and 
the  Yarrabah  Mission : 

"  There  are  practically  no  able-bodied  men  at  the  head 
station,  which  consists  of  the  children  of  school  age,  the 
sick,  and  the  aged.  The  rest  are  all  living  in  one  of  the 
eight  or  nine  settlements,  from  2  to  12  miles  distant,  under 
the  charge  of  a  native  teacher  who  holds  daily  service  and 
superintends  the  life  of  the  community.  Each  family 
cultivates  an  area  of  land  of  its  own,  planted  with  fruit 
trees  or  vegetables,  or  has  a  share  in  a  fishing-boat  provided 
by  the  mission  on  terms  by  which  it  becomes  his  own 
property.  The  superintendent  reports  that  the  amount  of 
work  done  by  the  natives  had  enormously  increased  since 
they  have  been  working  for  themselves ;  while  the  cost  of 
the  mission  has  proportionally  decreased.  The  same  plan  has 
28 


434  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

been  followed  with  even  greater  success  at  the  Presbyterian 
mission  at  Mapoon,  which  was  founded  about  the  same  time  as 
Yarrabah ;  and  the  two  form  an  encouraging  ideal  towards 
which  to  work.  Such  results,  however,  are  only  possible 
when  a  whole  generation  has  been  trained  up  under  mission 
influence;  and  that  it  should  be  possible  even  in  a  generation  to 
convert  the  aboriginal  savage  into  a  working,  self-supporting 
tiller  of  the  soil  is  no  small  tribute  to  the  missions. 

"  If  one  who  was  a  sceptic  in  the  aboriginal  capacity  for 
regeneration  really  desired  to  be  enlightened,  a  visit  to 
Yarrabah  would  remove  the  scales  from  his  eyes.  Standing 
near  a  large  tree  quite  close  to  the  beach,  he  would  see  a 
rough  wooden  cross  to  mark  the  spot  where  more  than 
twenty-one  years  ago  the  Hev.  J.  R  Gribble  landed  with 
three  Christian  blacks.  To-day  he  would  find  a  community 
of  about  300  Christian  blacks,  under  the  direction  of  six 
white  missionaries.  He  could  not  remain  many  hours  in 
the  place  without  discovering  that  savage  devil-worshipping 
nomads  had  been  converted  into  industrious,  intelligent,  and 
reverent  Christians.  He  would  not  find  that  one  side  of 
their  nature  had  been  developed  to  the  exclusion  of  the 
others.  He  would  acknowledge  that  the  savage  had  been 
taught  to  work  as  he  surveyed  the  crops  of  maize,  taro, 
bananas,  casava,  and  pineapple  which  he  would  see  at  the 
settlements,  where  neat  matting  and  grass  cottages,  with 
bright  gardens,  well-swept  paths,  and  decorated  inside  with 
gay  pictures,  show  that  they  have  learnt  to  care  for  their 
homes."  ^ 

"Work  on  the  plantations,"  says  the  Eeport  for  1912, 
"  has  gone  on  steadily  throughout  the  year.  Bananas  have 
been  sent  to  Sydney  and  Brisbane,  while  sweet  potatoes, 
mangrove  bark,  and  fish  were  sold  in  Cairns.  Quite  an 
industry  in  native  weapons  and  curios  has  been  developed. 
An  effort  is  being  made  to  make  the  adult  natives  materially 
independent.  Plots  of  land  have  been  taken  up  by  some, 
others  are  working  on  boats.  Full  market  price  is  given  to 
them  for  produce  and  fish.  Only  a  few  natives  in  Yarrabah 
itself  are  now  paid  wages  and  given  rations.  The  remainder 
buy  their  rations  and  other  necessaries  by  their  own 
exertions." 

This  description  of  the  Yarrabah  Mission  applies  with- 

^  Australia's  Great  Need,  by  C.  Tomlin,  p.  220  f. 


AUSTRALIA  435 

out  any  modification  to  that  at  Mapoon.  This  mission, 
which  was  started  in  1890,  was  staffed  by  Moravian 
missionaries  but  is  supported  financially  by  the  Federated 
Presbyterian  Churches  of  Australia.  It  is  situated  on  the 
west  shore  of  the  Cape  York  Peninsula  in  North 
Queensland.  James  Ward,  the  first  missionary,  went 
alone  among  the  natives,  knowing  that  during  the  previous 
two  months  they  had  killed  and  eaten  two  white  men. 
Again  and  again  he  quelled  fierce  quarrels  and  restored 
peace  in  the  native  camp  by  fearlessly  placing  himself 
between  the  infuriated  combatants,  taking  the  spears  from 
their  hands,  and  reasoning  with  them  in  such  English  as 
they  could  understand.  Before  Ward  died,  in  1895,  the 
mission  had  been  securely  established,  and  is  now  as 
successful  as  any  aboriginal  mission  in  Australia.  The 
number  of  aboriginals  reached  by  the  mission  is  about  400. 
In  the  year  1905-6  the  aboriginals  at  Mapoon  con- 
tributed £4  towards  the  support  of  foreign  missions.  The 
Presbyterian  Church  also  supports  stations  at  Weiim 
(1898)  and  Auruhun  (1903),  which  are  chiefly  staffed  by 
Moravian  missionaries,  and  are  situated  in  the  same 
native  reserve  as  Mapcon.  There  are  3  "  ordained 
brethren,"  3  missionaries'  wives,  and  3  native  helpers 
connected  with  the   3   stations.^ 

In  the  last  annual  report  (1914)  issued  by  the 
Moravian  Church  the  writer  deplores,  in  common  with 
other  authorities,  the  decrease  in  the  aboriginal  population. 
He  writes : 

"  In  spite  of  all  the  care  and  medical  aid  of  their  mission- 
aries, the  sad  fact  remains  that  the  blacks  of  North  Queens- 
land are  a  dying  race.  At  our  stations  too  the  deaths  out- 
numbered the  births  last  year.  Consumption  is  among  the 
diseases  formerly  unknown  but  now  brought  in  by  contact 
with  the  whites.  This  has  taken  several  of  our  most 
promising  young  people." 

The  missions  on  the  Mitchell  Biver  and  the  Roper  River, 

*  For  an   account  of  the  Mapoon  Mission  see    The  Romantic  Story  of 
Majwon,  by  A.  Ward. 


436  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

which  were  founded  in  1905  and  1907,  are  still  in  the 
pioneer  stage,  but  there  seems  every  prospect  that  they 
will  develop  satisfactorily.  A  church  has  been  built  in 
the  Mitchell  Eiver  Mission  district  and  one  aboriginal  has 
been  confirmed.  The  mission  boat  Francis  Pritt  is  worked 
by  a  crew  of  Mitchell  Eiver  natives.  The  influence  of 
the  mission  on  the  people  is  steadily  growing.  They 
are  learning  the  dignity  of  work  and  learning  also 
that  Christianity  means  character  and  righteousness  of 
life. 

The  Archbishop  of  Brisbane,  after  visiting  the  Mitchell 
Eiver  Mission  in  1906,  wrote — and  his  words  are  applic- 
able to  nearly  all  the  missions  to  the  Australian  aboriginals : 

"  These  missions  are  refuting  in  fact  and  experience  the 
oft-repeated  formula  that  it  is  impossible  to  raise  the 
Australian  aboriginal.  The  moral  of  Yarrabah,  of  Mapoon, 
of  Mitchell  Eiver  is  that,  given  favourable  circumstances 
(especially  isolation  from  contact  with  the  whites),  the 
Queensland  aboriginal  is  docile,  law-abiding,  and  even  quick 
to  learn.  .  .  .  We  wonder  whether,  if  their  natural  habits 
and  characteristics  are  wisely  dealt  with,  and  they  are  pre- 
served from  the  contamination  of  the  white  man's  drink 
and  the  white  man's  lust,  the  extermination  of  the  race  is 
after  all  so  near."  ^ 

The  Forrest  River  Mission,  which  is  situated  "70  miles 
down  the  west  shore  of  Cambridge  Gulf  in  the  diocese  of 
North -West  Australia,  was  established  in  1913.  It  was 
the  renewal  of  an  attempt  made  twelve  years  earlier  to 
start  a  mission  at  this  place.  The  staff  consists  of  one 
clergyman  and  three  laymen.  It  is  hoped  that  it  may 
prove  possible  to  open  several  other  stations  in  this  part 
of  North- West  Australia. 

The  mission  on  Moa  Island,  which  is  in  the  Torres 
Straits,  30  miles  north  of  Thursday  Island,  was  superin- 
tended and  developed  (1908-11)  by  the  late  Deaconess 
Buchanan,  who,  though  crippled  with  illness,  did  a  wonder- 

^  "  A  New  Mission  to  Australian  Aboriginals,"  The  East  and  The  West, 
April  1907. 


AUSTRALIA  437 

ful  work  both  amongst  the  aboriginals  and  amongst  the 
Japanese  immigrants. 

"  *  Teassher,'  as  the  Moa  natives  called  her,  was  the  only- 
white  person  in  the  South  Sea  Island  community  at  Moa. 
There,  in  her  two-roomed  grass  house,  she  carried  on  all 
her  work  as  teacher,  priestess,  doctor,  councillor,  and  friend. 
The  Moa  Island  Mission  will  always  remain  the  chief 
monument  of  her  devoted  life.  In  1910  the  Government 
showed  their  appreciation  of  the  work  which  she  initiated 
by  giving  a  grant  of  £120  towards  the  educational  work  of 
the  mission,  and  by  extending  the  reserve  in  acknowledg- 
ment of  the  industry  shown  by  the  mission  *  boys '  in 
planting  gardens.  A  year  or  two  ago  a  church,  largely 
subscribed  for  by  the  contributions  of  the  islanders,  was 
opened,  and  the  mission  still  flourishes  under  the  able 
direction  of  the  present  superintendent."  ^ 

The  E.G.  Church  has  a  mission  to  aboriginals  the 
centre  of  which  is  Neiu  Norcia,  82  miles  from  Perth. 
The  Benedictine  abbey  of  New  Norcia  was  founded  in 
1846  by  a  Spaniard,  Eudesindus  Salvado,  for  the  purpose 
of  evangelizing  the  Australian  natives.  For  three  years 
its  founder  lived  a  nomadic  life  and  ate  the  same  food  as 
the  savages  whom  he  hoped  to  influence.  In  1849  he 
started  for  Eome,  where  he  was  consecrated  as  Bishop  of 
Port  Victoria  in  North  Australia ;  but  his  destination  was 
eventually  altered,  and  having  obtained  forty  volunteers 
in  Spain,  he  reached  New  Norcia  again  in  1852.  With 
their  help  he  built  a  monastery,  a  school,  and  a  village,  in 
which  many  of  the  aboriginals  were  induced  to  live,  some  of 
whom  became  Christians.  Bishop  Salvado  died  in  1900,  in 
the  eighty-seventh  year  of  his  age  and  the  fifty-first  of  his 
episcopate.  His  successor,  Abbot  Torres,  brought  out  many 
priests  to  minister  both  to  the  aboriginals  and  to  the  white 
settlers  who  had  begun  to  settle  in  the  neighbourhood.  In 
1908  he  opened  a  branch  mission  2000  miles  away  in 
the  extreme  north-west  of  Australia,  which  is  called  the 
Drysdale  River  Aborigines  Mission.  This  mission  was 
*  See  Australia's  Greatest  Need,  p.  219  f. 


438  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

opened    with   a    party    of    15    in     charge    of     2    priests. 
In   1910   Abbot  Torres  was  consecrated  as  a  bishop. 

An  inter-denominational  society  called  "The  New 
South  Wales  Aborigines'  Mission"  employs  27  workers 
who  labour  chiefly  in  New  South  Wales  but  also  work 
in  West  Australia  and  in  the  north-west. 

Other  non-Christian  peoples  in  Australia  include,  accord- 
ing to  the  census  of  1 9 1 1  :  Chinese,  23,000;  Hindus,  3000; 
Japanese,  3000;  Malays,  1000;  and  South  Sea  Islanders, 
2500.  As  these  are  widely  scattered  throughout  the 
different  states,  missionary  work  amongst  them  is  difficult 
to  organize.  Good  work  has  been  done  amongst  the 
Chinese  immigrants  by  the  Anglicans,  Presbyterians,  and 
Wesleyans.  The  writer  of  this  volume  was  present  on 
one  occasion  when  eight  Chinese  who  had  been  pre- 
pared by  a  Chinese  catechist  were  baptized  in  Sydney 
Cathedral.  As  a  result  of  the  Immigration  Kestriction  Act 
of  1901,  the  number  of  coloured  aliens  in  Australia  fell  in 
the  course  of  a  decade  from  55,000  to  38,000. 

A  large  amount  of  good  work  had  been  done  amongst 
the  Kanakas — i.e.  the  immigrant  labourers  from  the 
South  Sea  Islands — before  they  were  excluded  by  law  from 
Australia.  Many  who  have  become  Christians  in  Australia 
have  returned  as  supporters  of  Christian  missions  to  the 
islands  from  which  they  came.  At  the  mission  which  the 
S.P.G.  helped  to  support  at  Bundaberg  in  Queensland  there 
were  in  1891  10,000  men  from  fifty  different  islands 
under  Christian  instruction. 

TASMANIA; 

It  is  a  disgrace  to  the  Christian  Church  that  the 
aboriginal  population  of  Tasmania  was  exterminated,  or 
allowed  to  die  out,  before  any  missionary  work  had  been 
started  amongst  them.  After  their  numbers  had  been 
greatly  reduced  by  fighting  with  the  English  immigrants, 
they  were  removed  to  Flinders  Island  in  the  Bass  Straits 


AUSTRALIA  439 

in  1835.  Here,  despite  the  fact  that  they  were  kindly 
treated,  they  rapidly  dwindled  in  numbers.  When  Bishop 
Nixon  visited  them  in  1843  there  were  only  54,  and 
four  years  later  they  were  reduced  to  16.  The  last  died 
in  1876. 


XIX. 
NEW  ZEALAND. 

The  first  missionary  to  set  foot  on  New  Zealand  was 
Mr.  Wilson  of  the  L.M.S.,  who  spent  one  night  on  shore 
there,  in  1800,  on  his  way  to  the  Society  Islands.  The 
Rev.  Samuel  Marsden,  the  senior  Anglican  chaplain  at 
Sydney,  having  made  friends  with  two  chiefs  who  had 
come  from  New  Zealand,  appealed  to  the  C.M.S.  to  start  a 
mission  there.  In  1809  this  society  sent  out  a  school- 
master, a  carpenter,  and  a  shoemaker ;  but  such  was  the 
evil  reputation  for  cannibalism  of  the  New  Zealanders 
that  they  had  to  wait  two  years  before  they  could  get  a 
boat  to  take  them  there.  After  a  preliminary  visit  to  the 
coast  had  been  made,  Mr.  Marsden,  accompanied  by  the 
C.M.S.  missionaries  and  the  New  Zealand  chiefs,  sailed  from 
Port  Jackson  in  1814,  and  on  Christmas  Day  of  this  year 
the  first  Christian  service  was  held  at  Rangihona  (Bay  of 
Islands).  Mr.  Marsden  returned  to  his  work  in  Sydney 
in  the  following  March.  In  1822  the  C.M.S.  sent  out  the 
Eev.  Henry  Williams,  and  in  1825  his  brother  William, 
who  became  the  first  Bishop  of  Waiapu.  These  two  brothers 
did  much  to  promote  the  evangelization  of  the  Maoris  in 
the  early  days  of  the  mission.  In  1 8  2  5  the  first  convert  was 
bai)tized.  Nearly  five  years  passed  before  a  second  baptism 
took  place.  In  1830  an  industrial  mission  was  started  at 
Waimate,  and  from  this  date  the  mission  made  rapid 
progress.  In  1837  Mr.  Marsden  paid  his  seventh  and 
last  visit  to  New  Zealand,  and  in  1838  he  died.  During 
this  year  the  New  Testament  and  the  Prayer  Book  were 
printed  in  Maori,  and  the  mission  was  visited  for  the  first 
time  by  Bishop  Broughton  of  Sydney.     In  1839  the  New 

440 


NEW   ZEALAND  441 

Zealand  Land  Company,  which  had  been  formed  in 
England,  having  bought  large  tracts  of  land  from  the 
local  chiefs,  founded  the  town  of  Wellington.  In  1840 
the  islands  became  a  British  colony. 

In  1842  Bishop  George  Selwyn,  the  first  Bishop  of 
New  Zealand,  was  able  to  say  in  a  sermon  preached  at 
Paihia :  "  We  see  here  a  whole  nation  of  pagans  converted 
to  the  faith." 

Charles  Darwin,  after  visiting  the  Anglican  mission 
station  at  Waimate  in  1835,  wrote:  "All  this  is  very 
surprising  when  it  is  considered  that  five  years  ago  nothing 
but  the  fern  flourished  here.  ,  .  .  The  lesson  of  the  mis- 
sionary is  the  enchanter's  wand." 

In  the  course,  and  as  a  result,  of  the  second  Maori 
war,  which  lasted  with  short  intermissions  from  1860 
to  1870,  a  great  apostasy  occurred.  In  1864  the  Pai 
Marire,  or  Hau  Hau  fanaticism,  swept  over  the  country. 
It  originated  in  the  delusions  of  a  half-witted  man  who 
declared  that  the  angel  Gabriel  and  the  Virgin  Mary 
had  appeared  to  him  and  had  promised  that  the  Maoris 
uttering  a  dog-like  cry  (Hau  Hau)  should  drive  the  white 
man  into  the  sea.  The  new  religion  was  a  strange  medley 
of  Christianity  and  paganism  and  contained  many  con- 
tradictions. 

"  The  abiding  presence  of  the  Virgin  Mary  was  promised, 
and  the  religion  of  England  as  taught  by  Scripture  was 
declared  to  be  false  and  the  Scriptures  were  to  be  burnt.  Yet 
the  creed  and  form  of  worship  adopted  included  not  only 
Eomanism  but  articles  from  Judaism  and  the  Old  Testament, 
to  which  were  added  a  mixture  of  Mormonism,  mesmerism, 
spiritualism,  ventriloquism,  and  some  of  the  worst  features 
of  the  old  Maori  usage  and  the  days  of  cannibalism.  The 
rites  which  accompanied  these  doctrines  were  bloody, 
sensual,  foul,  and  devilish."  ^ 

During  one  of  the  outbreaks  which  accompanied  the 
establishment  of  this  new  religion  the  Eev.  C.  S.  Volkner, 
a  C.M.S.  missionary,  was  martyred  in  1865.     Two-thirds 
1  See  Two  Hundred  Years  of  the  S.P.G.,  p.  441  f. 


442  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

of  the  Maori  Christians  abandoned  their  faith  and  adopted 
the  Hau  Hau  religion,  but  their  number  did  not  include 
any  of  the  Maori  clergy. 

In  1882  the  C.M.S.  began  to  withdraw  from  New 
Zealand  and  to  hand  over  its  work  to  a  special  Maori 
Board  appointed  by  the  Church  of  the  Province  of  New 
Zealand.  Its  grants  in  support  of  the  work  ceased 
altogether  in  1903. 

Wesleyan  Missions. 

In  1822  the  first  Wesleyan  missionary,  the  Eev. 
S.  Leigh,  arrived  and  started  work  at  Kaeo  in  the  Auckland 
district.  Mr.  Leigh  had  previously  visited  New  Zealand 
in  1818  at  the  request  of  Mr.  Marsden,  who  desired  to 
interest  him  in  missionary  work  amongst  the  Maoris.  In 
1827  this  mission  station  was  destroyed  by  the  chief 
Hongi  Hika,  and  the  missionaries  retired  to  Australia. 
Eeturning  in  the  course  of  a  few  months,  they  established 
a  new  station  at  Hokianga.  In  1831  they  obtained  their 
first  converts,  and  in  1834  81  converts  were  baptized  in 
the  mission  chapel  at  Mangungu.  By  1838  the  wor- 
shippers at  Mangungu  had  increased  to  1000.  In  1844 
a  training  college  was  established  at  Auckland.  In  1855, 
when  the  Australian  Wesleyan  Conference  undertook  the 
charge  of  the  mission,  the  Maori  "  members "  numbered 
3070  and  the  adherents  7590.  The  churches  used  by 
the  Maoris  numbered  74.  When  the  Hau  Hau  fanaticism 
spread,  the  Eev.  John  Whiteley,  who  had  come  out  as  a 
missionary  in  1833,  was  murdered  in  1869  by  men  on 
behalf  of  whom  he  had  laboured  for  so  many  years.  In 
1874  a  New  Zealand  Conference  was  formed.  The  work 
amongst  the  Maoris,  which  had  been  seriously  interrupted 
by  the  spread  of  the  Hau  Hau  superstition,  has  gradually 
recovered,  but  the  number  of  Maori  Christians  connected 
with  the  missions  never  attained  to  its  former  totals. 
There  are  now  a  considerable  number  of  Maoris  connected 
with  Wesleyan    congregations    in  different   parts  of  New 


NEW   ZEALAND  443 

Zealand,  but  there  appear  to  be  no  definite  mission 
stations. 

In  1844  the  Eev.  J.  Duncan  of  the  Eeformed  Church 
of  Scotland  started  a  Preshyterian  Mission  in  the  Manawatu 
district  in  the  North  Island.  He  lived  to  be  ninety-four, 
and  died  in  1908.  Since  1871  the  Presbyterian  Church 
of  New  Zealand  has  been  carrying  on  this  work  amongst 
the  Maoris.  At  its  principal  station,  Turakina,  in  North 
Island,  it  had  in  1910  53  Christian  adherents  and  13 
communicants. 

The  total  number  of  Maoris  in  New  Zealand  is  about 
47,000.  About  half  of  these  live  in  the  north-west  part 
of  the  North  Island,  which  forms  the  diocese  of  Auckland. 
In  this  diocese  there  are  51  Maori  churches  and  221 
Maori  lay-readers.  Of  the  Maoris  living  in  this  area  about 
8000  belong  to  the  Anglican  Church,  about  3000  are 
Eoman  Catholics,  2000  or  3000  are  Presbyterians  or 
Wesleyans,  and  the  rest  are  heathen  or  apostates. 

In  the  diocese  of  Waiapu,  which  occupies  the  eastern 
part  of  North  Island  and  contains  a  population  of  17,000 
Maoris,  there  is  an  Anglican  college  for  Maoris  at  Gisborne. 
In  this  diocese  there  are  27  Maori  and  4  English  clergy 
working  amongst  Maoris.  The  Maori  clergy  receive 
stipends  from  funds  which  have  been  raised  by  their  own 
people  supplemented  by  grants  from  the  Waiapu  Maori 
Mission.  The  Maoris  in  this  diocese  belonging  to  the 
Anglican  Church  number  about  8000.  In  the  diocese 
of  Wellington,  which  contains  6000  Maoris,  3500  belong 
to  the  Anglican  Church.  In  the  South  Island  there  are 
2500  Maoris,  the  majority  of  whom  belong  to  the  Anglican 
Church.  In  the  South  Island  the  work  amongst  Maoris 
is  carried  on  as  a  rule  by  the  European  clergy  in  con- 
junction with  their  ordinary  parochial  work  amongst  white 
people.  There  are  43  Maori  clergy,  who  are  members  of 
the  General  Synod  and  have  the  same  status  as  European 
clergy. 

The  Mormons  claim  5000  Maori  adherents. 


444 


HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 


Roman  Catholic  Missions  to  the  Maoris, 

In  1836  seven  members  of  the  Marist  Brothers 
landed  in  the  north-west  part  of  the  North  Island,  and  they 
and  their  successors  began  work  both  amongst  the 
colonists  and  the  Maoris.  By  1850  the  number  of  Maori 
"neophytes"  had  risen  to  5044.  In  1853  there  were  about 
1000  native  Christians  in  the  diocese  of  Wellington.  When 
the  Hau  Hau  fanaticism  spread  in  1860  and  the  following 
years  the  R.C.  missions  were  almost  completely  obliterated. 
The  work  has  been  re-started,  and  steady  progress  has  been 
made  within  the  last  thirty  years.  In  the  dioceses  of 
Wellington  and  Ghristchurch  there  are  19  churches 
served  by  7  priests  and  the  number  of  Christians  is  about 
2000.  In  the  diocese  of  Auckland  there  are  about  4000 
Christians,  22  churches,  and  16  priests. 

One  of  the  most  successful  missions  to  the  Maoris  in 
New  Zealand  is  that  of  the  B.C.  Church  on  the  Wanganui 
River. 

The  following  figures  will  show  the  fluctuations  of  the 
Maori  population  (the  figures  include  about  3000  half- 
caste  Maoris) : — 


1891   . 

.   41,993 

1896   . 

.   39,854 

1901   . 

.   43,143 

1906   . 

.   47,731 

1911   . 

.   49,844 

The  Government  spends  about  £32,000  per  annum 
on  the  education  of  the  Maoris  and  its  99  schools  are 
attended  by  4735  children. 


XX. 

ISLES   OF  THE  PACIFIC. 

The  Islands  of  the  Pacific  may  be  classified  under  three 
heads :  Polynesia^  Melanesia^  and  Micronesia}  Polynesia 
includes  the  islands  south  of  the  Sandwich  Islands  and 
east  of  170°W. ;  Melanesia  includes  most  of  the  western 
islands  of  the  South  Pacific  west  of  Fiji ;  Micronesia 
lies  to  the  north  and  north-east  of  Melanesia.  The 
population  of  the  South  Pacific  Islands  is  probably  under 
2,000,000.  The  total  Christian  population  is  about 
400,000,  of  whom  about  80,000  are  connected  with  the 
RC.  Church. 

Ninety  years  ago  the  South  Pacific  Islands  were  almost 
entirely  heathen  and  were  the  home  of  cannibalism  and 
every  form  of  cruelty.  To-day,  more  than  350  are  pro- 
fessedly Christian. 

Polynesia. 

The  Hawaii  or  Sandwich  Islands,  which  were  the  scene 
of  Captain  Cook's  murder  in  1779,  contain  a  population  of 
about  170,000. 

The  capital  of  the  islands  is  Honolulu,  which  is  in 
Oahu,  one  of  the  four  largest  islands  of  the  group.  In 
1794  the  king,  Kamehameha,  sent  a  request  to  England 
begging  for  Christian  teachers,  but  no  response  was  made. 
The  A.B.C.F.M.  began  work  in  1820,  which  received 
support  from  the  local  chiefs  and  attained  such  rapid 
success  that  within  fifty  years  the  Christianization  of 
the  islands  was  completed.     This   society,  having  helped 

^  The  three  vrords  respectively  denote  many  islands,  black  islands,  and 
small  islands. 

445 


446  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

to  constitute  a  local  Church,  withdrew  its  supervision 
prematurely,  with  the  result  that  many  of  the  converts 
lapsed  and  the  moral  tone  of  the  Christians  became 
very  unsatisfactory.  In  1827  some  French  RC.  priests 
endeavoured  to  start  a  mission,  but  they  were  banished 
in  1831.  In  1839  a  RC.  mission  was  established.  A 
large  number  of  the  Christians  connected  with  the 
Hawaiian  Evangelical  Association,  which  the  AB.C.F.M. 
had  established,  eventually  joined  this  mission. 

In  1861,  as  the  result  of  a  direct  appeal  of  Kameha- 
meha  iv.  to  Queen  Victoria,  an  Anglican  bishop  and  two 
missionaries  supported  by  the  S.P.G.  were  sent  to  Honolulu. 
The  first  person  to  receive  baptism  from  the  Anglican 
missionaries  was  the  queen,  who  was  baptized  in  1862. 
At  the  time  when  the  request  for  an  Anglican  mission 
was  made  by  the  king,  there  were  25,000  persons  in 
the  islands  "  unconnected  with  any  creed."  Work  was 
also  undertaken  by  this  mission  amongst  the  Chinese 
immigrants. 

In  1902  the  charge  of  the  diocese  and  the  mission  was 
transferred  to  the  American  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 

The  Hawaiian  group  includes  the  island  of  MoloJcai, 
where  the  E.G.  missionary  Damien  and  a  Protestant 
minister  Hanaloa,  after  ministering  to  the  lepers,  both 
died  of  leprosy. 

The  mixed  character  of  the  population  of  the  Hawaiian 
Islands  adds  greatly  to  the  difficulties  with  which  the 
Christian  missionary  has  to  contend.  The  population 
includes  21,666  Chinese,  79,520  Japanese,  4500  Coreans, 
22,701  Portuguese,  2031  Spaniards,  4896  Porto  Kicans, 
14,409  of  American,  British,  and  German  birth,  26,108 
pure  Hawaiians  and  11,912  part  Hawaiians.  There  are 
5000  Mormons  and  44,000  Buddhists. 

The  American  Episcopal  Mission,  besides  carrying  on 
work  amongst  the  Hawaiians  in  several  of  the  islands,  has 
missions  to  the  Chinese,  Japanese,  and  Corean  immigrants. 
The  mission  to  the  Chinese,  which  was  begun  in  1887,  has 
resulted  in  the  ordination  of  several  Chinese  clergy,  one 


ISLES    OF    THE    PACIFIC  447 

of  whom  now  ministers  to  the  Chinese  immigrants  in 
Tonga.  Japanese  work  is  carried  on  at  Hilo,  and  is  super- 
intended by  a  Japanese  missionary  who  has  been  ordained. 
As  a  result  of  work  amongst  the  Coreans,  over  100  have 
been  baptized  during  the  last  few  years.  There  are  20 
clergy  belonging  to  the  American  Episcopal  Mission  who 
work  at  27  centres. 

The  missionary  enthusiasm  of  the  Hawaiian  people 
may  be  illustrated  by  the  fact  that  30  per  cent,  of  its 
native  ministry  are  foreign  missionaries  and  22  per  cent, 
of  the  Christian  contributions  in  the  islands  are  devoted  to 
foreign  missions. 

In  the  Marquesas  and  Paumotu  islands,  which  lie  to 
the  south-east  of  Hawaii,  Protestant  missions  are  re- 
presented by  the  Paris  Missionary  Society  and  by  the 
Hawaiian  Evangelical  Association.  The  K.C.  mission, 
which  began  work  in  1848,  has  9  priests  and  about 
2500  Christians. 

The  Society  Islands. — The  Tahiti  Archipelago,  or  Society 
Islands,  consists  of  eleven  islands,  of  which  Tahiti  is  the 
largest.     The  total  population  is  about  30,000. 

When  the  discovery  of  Tahiti  by  Captain  Cook  became 
known,  the  Viceroy  of  Peru  sent  two  E.C.  priests  to  start 
a  mission  there.  They  remained  only  ten  months,  and 
returned  to  South  America  in  the  ship  which  brought  them. 
In  1777,  when  Captain  Cook  revisited  Tahiti,  he  saw  the 
house  which  had  been  erected  for  them,  with  a  cross 
bearing  this  inscription,  "  Christus  vincit,  et  Carolus  imperat. 
1776."     After  seeing  this,  he  wrote  in  his  journal : 

"  It  is  very  unlikely  that  any  measure  of  this  kind  should 
ever  be  seriously  thought  of,  as  it  can  neither  serve  the 
purpose  of  public  ambition  nor  private  avarice,  and  without 
such  inducements  I  may  pronounce  that  it  will  never  be 
undertaken." 

Despite  the  pessimistic  attitude  of  Captain  Cook,  the 
reading  of  his  Voyages  inspired  several  Englishmen  to 
attempt  missionary  work  in  Polynesia  and  elsewhere. 


448  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  first  successful  attempt  to  introduce  Christianity 
was  made  in  1796  by  the  L.M.S.  In  this  year  the  mission 
ship  Duff  landed  18  missionaries,  most  of  whom  were 
artisans  or  mechanics.  After  enduring  many  hardships, 
the  majority  of  them  retired  to  Sydney  in  1798.  Later 
on,  when  King  Pomare,  who  favoured  the  Christians,  gained 
a  victory  over  his  opponents,  several  of  these  returned,  and 
rapid  progress  began  to  be  made. 

In  the  early  decades  of  the  nineteenth  century  many  of 
the  supporters  of  missionary  enterprise  believed  that  it 
would  be  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  evangelize  savages 
until  they  had  become  to  a  considerable  extent  civilized. 
In  accordance  with  this  belief,  the  majority  of  the  mission 
workers  first  sent  out  by  the  L.M.S.  were  mechanics.  When 
the  L.M.S.  ship  Duff  sailed  from  London  on  its  first  voyage 
the    mission    party    included    4    ministers,    6    carpenters, 

2  shoemakers,  2  bricklayers,  2  tailors,  2  smiths,  2  weavers, 
a  surgeon,  a  hatter,  a  shopkeeper,  a  cotton  manufacturer, 
a  cabinetmaker,  a  draper,  a  harness  maker,  a  gentleman's 
servant  who  had  become  a  tinworker,  a  cooper,  and  a 
butcher.  There  were  also  3  children.  When  the  Duff 
first  visited  Tongatabu  in  the  Friendly  Islands,  it  dis- 
embarked 10  mechanics,  to  begin  a  "  mission  of  civilization," 
and  so  prepare  the  way  for  missionary  work.  The  C.M.S. 
also  began  their   work   in   New  Zealand  by  sending   out 

3  mechanics  (at  the  suggestion  of  Mr.  Marsden),  and  several 
years  were  allowed  to  elapse  before  a  missionary  teacher  was 
sent.  Subsequent  experience  has  shown  that  the  Christian 
teacher  is  the  best  pioneer  of  civilization,  and  that  civiliza- 
tion which  is  not  the  outcome  of  the  acceptance  of  Christian 
teaching  will  seldom  prepare  the  way  for  the  latter. 

James  Chalmers,  who  possessed  unique  experience  of 
the  influence  exerted  by  the  advent  of  Western  civilization 
apart  from  religious  teaching  and  of  the  influence  exerted 
by  Christian  missionaries  in  the  South  Sea  Islands  and 
afterwards  in  New  Guinea,  once  said :  "  Nowhere  have  I 
seen  our  boasted  civilization  civilizing,  but  everywhere  have 
I  seen  Christianity  acting  as  the  true  civilizer." 


ISLES   OF   THE   PACIFIC  449 

How  great  was  the  civilizing  influence  which  was 
exerted  by  the  L.M.S.  missionaries  in  the  early  years  of  the 
nineteenth  century  may  be  gathered  from  the  statement 
made  by  Commander  Duperry,  who  wrote  in  1823  : 

"  The  missionaries  of  the  Society  of  London  have  entirely 
changed  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  inhabitants. 
Idolatry  no  longer  exists  .  .  .  the  bloody  wars  in  which  the 
people  engaged  and  human  sacrifices  have  entirely  ceased 
since  1816.     All  the  natives  can  read  and  write." 

The  most  renowned  missionary  in  the  South  Seas  was 
John  Williams,  who  began  work  at  Baiatea  and  made  this 
island  the  starting-point  for  his  extensive  missionary 
journeys. 

The  RC.  Church  started  a  mission  in  1837,  and 
partly  in  consequence  of  the  difficulties  which  resulted 
from  this  mission  the  French  Government  proclaimed  a 
protectorate  over  the  islands  in  1842,  and  finally  annexed 
them  in  1880.  After  the  annexation  the  L.M.S.  handed 
over  its  missionary  work  to  the  Paris  Missionary  Society. 

In  French  Polynesia,  i.e.  in  the  Society  Islands,  the 
Leeward  Islands,  the  Paumotu  Islands,  the  Austral  Islands, 
the  Gambier  Islands,  and  the  Marquesas,  the  total 
population  of  which  is  about  30,000,  there  are  about 
20,000  Koman  Catholics  and  about  10,000  Protestants. 
The  RC.  missionaries,  who  belong  to  the  Order  of  the 
Sacred  Heart  of  Jesus  and  Mary,  number  18  and  have 
52  schools.  The  Protestant  missions  are  supported  by 
the  Paris  Society,  which  has  58  stations,  10  European 
and  44  local  workers.  The  Mormons  are  active  in  these 
islands. 

The  Cook  Islands  lie  midway  between  Tahiti  and  Samoa. 
The  largest,  Eara tonga,. has  a  population  of  7000.  Niu^, 
or  Savage  Island,  which  lies  a  little  to  the  west,  has 
a  population  of  4000.  John  Williams,  helped  by  some 
Tahitian  teachers,  acted  as  a  pioneer  missionary  in  Raratonga. 
The  whole  group  has  been  evangelized  by  L.M.S.  missionaries 
and  many  converts  from  these  islands  have  acted  as 
29 


450  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

evangelists  to  other  islands.  One  instance,  which  is  typical 
of  many,  deserves  special  mention.  Pao,  who  was  born  in 
Karatonga,  became  a  Christian  as  a  result  of  his  association 
with  a  sailor  on  an  American  whaler.  Leaving  Kara  tonga, 
he  landed  at  Lifu  in  the  Loyalty  Islands,  3000  miles  dis- 
tant, and  springing  ashore  from  a  canoe  amidst  a  crowd  of 
cannibal  savages  he  called  out  to  them,  "  Go  tell  the  king 
I  am  a  friend,  and  have  brought  him  a  message  from  the 
Great  Spirit."  ^  When  brought  before  the  king,  he  was  asked, 
"  Have  you  seen  the  Great  Spirit  ?  "  "  No,"  replied  Pao, 
"  you  cannot  see  a  spirit."  "  Then  how  did  you  get  the 
message  ? "  inquired  the  king.  "  By  letter,"  said  Pao,  "  and 
here  it  is " — producing  his  New  Testament.  The  king 
received  him  kindly,  but  later  on  Pao  was  forced  to  flee 
from  the  island.  However,  he  was  eventually  recalled  by 
the  people,  and  in  the  course  of  a  few  years  the  inhabitants 
of  Lifu  had  become  Christians. 

The  population  of  the  Cook  Islands  and  Niu^  is 
12,000.  In  1909  there  were  4407  Church  members, 
6885  other  adherents,  and  32  ordained  teachers.  Much, 
however,  remains  to  be  done,  as  the  moral  stamina  of 
the  population  is  low  even  by  comparison  with  that  of  the 
inhabitants  of  other  islands.  Since  1823  the  population 
of  these  islands  has  decreased  by  half. 

Tonga. — The  Tongan  group,  or  Friendly  Islands,  con- 
sists of  about  150  islands,  most  of  which  are  very  small. 
The  population  forty  years  ago  was  about  50,000  ;  to-day 
it  is  about  22,000.  In  1797  the  L.M.S.  ship  Duff 
visited  Tongatabu.  The  efforts  of  the  mechanics  which  it 
disembarked  proved  unsuccessful,  and  in  1800  they  with- 
drew to  Sydney.  In  1822  the  Wesleyan  Methodists 
established  a  mission  which  after  several  vicissitudes  became 
firmly  established.  A  great  revival  in  1834  resulted  in  the 
general  acceptance  of  Christianity  and  led  to  the  attempt 
to  send  the  gospel  to  Fiji.  The  spread  of  the  Christian 
faith  was  largely  due  to  the  support  of  the  chief  Taufaahau 
(afterwards  known  as  King  George),  who  died  in   1893, 

^  "Pao,  the  Apostle  of  Lifu,"  The  Pacific  Islanders,  pp.  29-54. 


ISLES    OF   THE   PACIFIC  451 

aged  100.  Eventually,  however,  a  "  Free  Church  of  Tonga  " 
under  the  patronage  of  the  king  was  established  as  a 
rival  to  the  Wesleyan  Church,  and  the  majority  of  the 
people  now  belong  to  this  Church. 

The  E.C.  Mission,  which  was  established  in  1851,  has 
about  2000  members. 

There  is  also  a  small  Anglican  mission  which  is  under 
the  charge  of  Bishop  Willis,  formerly  Bishop  of  Honolulu. 

Of   the  Samoan  group,  three  small  islands,  including 
Tutuila,   form    a    protectorate    of    the    U.S.A.;    the    rest 
belonged    to    Germany    until    the    war    of    1914,    when 
they  were  taken  over  by  Great  Britain.      The  population, 
which  is  now  about  35,000,  has  been  steadily  decreasing. 
Christianity   was   first   preached  in   the  islands   by    some 
converted  Tongans  who  had  married  into  Samoan  famihes. 
The   first   European    missionary  to  visit  the   islands   was 
the  Eev.  John  Williams  of  the  L.M.S.,  who  in   1830  left 
8    Tahitian    teachers.     In    1836    European    missionaries 
were   introduced   by   the   L.M.S.,   and    the   work    rapidly 
developed.       In     1835    the    first    Wesleyan    missionaries 
arrived.     For  some  years  there  was  a  certain  amount  of 
misunderstanding  between  the  converts  connected  with  the 
two  missions,  but  the  rivalry  and  disputes  have  practically 
died    out.     Samoa    is     now     nominally     Christian.     The 
L.M.S.   returns    8861    members  and    28,000    attendants; 
the  Wesleyans  return  2359  members  and  6500  "hearers." 
At  the  Malua  school,  which  is  under  the  charge   of 
the    L.M.S.    Mission,    1300    men    have    been    trained    as 
preachers  who  have  acted  as  mission  agents  over  a  wide 
area.     The     mission     industrial     schools    are     exerting    a 
beneficial    influence    throughout   the    island.       There    are 
a  large  number  of  Chinese   coolies,   for  whom   but   little 
has  as  yet  been  done  by  the  Christian  missionaries.     Eobert 
Louis  Stevenson  is  buried  at  Vailima  in  Samoa.     "  Since 
he  died,  the  chiefs  of  the  district  have  forbidden  the  use 
of  firearms   on  the  hillside,  that   the  birds  may  sing  un- 
disturbed the  songs  he  so  loved  in  life."  ^ 

1  The  Call  of  the  Pacific,  by  J.  W.  Burton,  p.  48. 


452  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  E.G.  Mission,  which  was  begun  in  1845 
and  is  under  the  charge  of  the  Marist  Fathers,  returns 
7500  Cathohcs.  There  are  21  priests,  of  whom  several 
are  natives.     The  Mormons  number  300. 

The  Fiji  Islands,  2  3  0  in  number,  have  rapidly  decreased 
in  population  since  the  people  came  in  contact  with 
Europeans.  In  1850  the  population,  which  is  now  about 
87,000,  was  reckoned  at  200,000.  The  people  "are  of  a 
lower  grade  than  the  Tongans,  Samoans,  Tahitians,  and 
Maoris.  They  have  not  nearly  the  same  intellectual 
development  and  their  civilization  is  of  a  coarser  order. 
They  are  in  turn  superior  to  the  western  peoples  of  New 
Hebrides,  New  Britain,  and  New  Guinea.  .  .  .  Cannibalism 
was  an  integral  part  of  Fijian  life,  and  the  worst  forms 
of  barbarity  found  constant  expression.  This  has  affected 
not  only  the  mental  and  moral  development  of  the  people, 
but  it  has  weakened  and  poisoned  their  physical  strength."  ^ 

Christianity  was  first  introduced  into  Fiji  by  two 
islanders  sent  by  John  Williams  from  Tahiti.  In  1834 
two  English  Wesleyan  ministers  from  Tonga,  together 
with  a  number  of  Tongan  preachers,  arrived.  At  first  all 
went  well,  but  "  bloodshed,  cannibalism,  licentiousness,  and 
cruelty  were  entrenched  behind  stubborn  customs,"  and  a 
series  of  persecutions  followed.  One  of  the  first  missionaries 
who  set  foot  in  Fiji  began  his  work  by  burying  the  hands, 
feet,  and  heads  of  eighty  victims  whose  bodies  had  been 
roasted  and  eaten  at  a  cannibal  feast.  Gradually,  however, 
the  new  faith  spread  from  island  to  island,  and  before  1850 
at  least  a  third  of  the  population  had  been  influenced  by 
the  teaching  of  the  missionaries. 

At  this  period  the  work  progressed  so  rapidly  that  it 
became  almost  necessarily  superficial.  Whole  tribes  re- 
nounced idolatry  in  a  day,  and  so  great  was  the  number 
of  those  who  became  nominal  Christians  that  it  was  im- 
possible to  give  them  any  adequate  instruction.  Churches 
and  mission  schools  have  now  been  built  all  over  the 
islands,  and  the  vast  majority  of  the  people  attend  church 

1  The  Call  of  the  Paiific,  p.  8. 


ISLES    OF    THE    PACIFIC  453 

on  Sundays  and  have  family  worship  in  their  own  houses. 
The  people  are  with  few  exceptions  adherents  of  the 
Wesleyan  or  of  the  E.G.  Church.  The  adherents  of  the 
latter  number  10,824,  but  this  includes  many  Europeans, 
Indians,  and  other  South  Sea  Islanders. 

The  RC.  Mission,  which  was  begun  in  1863,  is  staffed 
by  33  priests. 

Many  of  the  Fijian  converts  connected  with  the 
Wesleyan  Mission  have  gone  as  Christian  evangelists  to 
New  Guinea,  New  Britain,  and  the  Solomon  Islands. 

Indians  in  Fiji. — The  rapid  increase  of  Indian  coolies 
in  Fiji,  combined  with  the  steady  decrease  in  the  native 
population,  threatens  to  result  in  re-establishing  heathenism 
in  these  islands.  The  Indians  number  over  40,000,  and 
increase  year  by  year.  The  immorality  and  drunkenness 
which  in  many  instances  prevail  among  these  coolies  render 
it  most  difficult  to  prosecute  successful  missionary  work  on 
their  behalf.  In  1897  the  Wesleyans  made  a  first  attempt 
to  work  amongst  the  Indians  in  Suva,  and  the  Methodist 
Missionary  Society  of  Australasia  now  supports  three 
missionaries  amongst  them.  In  1902  the  Eev.  H.  Late  ward, 
who  had  worked  for  many  years  in  India  in  connection 
with  the  S.P.G.,  began  work  amongst  the  Indians  at  Labasa. 
In  1908  an  Anglican  bishop  was  appointed  to  superintend 
work  amongst  the  English  settlers  in  Polynesia  and  to 
develop  the  mission  to  the  Indian  coolies  in  Fiji.  This 
mission  is  supported  by  the  S.P.G.,  and  work  is  carried  on 
at  Labasa  and  Suva. 

The  E.G.  Church  reaches  some  of  the  Indians  who 
have  settled  in  Fiji  through  its  schools. 

The  Tohelau  or  Union  Islands,  which  lie  north-west  of 
Samoa,  were  evangelized  by  L.M.S.  missionaries.  They 
include  the  islands  of  Fakaafo,  Nukunono,  and  Atafu. 

Melanesia. 

Melanesia,  which  lies  to  the  west  of  Polynesia  and 
south  and  west  of  Micronesia,  includes  about  250  islands 


454  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

of  which  the  largest  are  in  the  Bismarck  Archipelago  and 
in  the  Solomon  group.  The  population  is  reckoned  at 
475,000,  of  whom  141,000  are  Christians.  Of  these 
latter  about  30,000  are  Eoman  Catholics. 

The  Anglican  Melanesian  Mission  has  as  its  sphere  of 
work  the  western  islands  of  the  South  Pacific  from  the 
northern  New  Hebrides  to  the  Solomon  Islands  inclusive. 

Bishop  Selwyn  of  New  Zealand,  having  visited  in  1848 
the  islands  which  now  form  the  diocese  of  Melanesia, 
decided  to  open  a  training  school  at  Auckland,  N.Z.,  and 
to  bring  to  it  boys  from  the  various  islands  which  he 
desired  to  evangelize,  who  after  being  taught  the  Christian 
faith  might  go  back  to  their  homes  as  evangelists  and 
teachers.  The  method  inaugurated  by  Selwyn  has  been 
followed  by  the  mission  ever  since.  The  first  five  native 
scholars  reached  Auckland  in  1849,  and  their  number 
rapidly  increased.  By  1852  the  bishop  had  visited  fifty 
islands  and  had  collected  forty  scholars  who  spoke  ten 
different  languages.  The  island  of  Mai  in  the  New 
Hebrides  sent  its  chief  as  one  of  the  scholars.  The 
school  was  for  some  years  held  at  Auckland  during 
the  summer  and  at  one  of  the  Melanesian  islands  during 
the  winter.  In  1861  John  Coleridge  Patteson,  a  Fellow 
of  Merton  College,  Oxford,  who  had  joined  the  mission  in 
1855,  was  consecrated  as  Bishop  of  Melanesia.  In  1867 
the  school  and  the  centre  of  the  mission  were  transferred 
to  Norfolk  Island,  its  situation  rendering  it  possible  to 
maintain  the  school  throughout  the  whole  year.  In  1868 
George  Sarawia  was  ordained  as  the  first  native  deacon 
and  stationed  on  Mota  Island.  In  1871  the  mission 
suffered  a  serious  loss  by  the  murder  of  Bishop  Patteson 
at  Nukapu  Island,  one  of  the  Santa  Cruz  group.  The 
bishop  had  visited  the  island  before  and  had  been  well 
received,  but  previous  to  his  last  visit  a  "  labour  ship  " 
had  visited  the  island  and  had  apparently  carried  off 
forcibly  five  of  the  inhabitants.  When  the  bishop  landed 
he  was  murdered  and  several  islanders  who  accompanied 
him  were  wounded  in  revenge  for  the  wrong  which  had 


ISLES    OF   THE   PACIFIC  455 

been  done  by  the  "labour  ship."  When  his  body  was 
recovered,  a  palm  frond  with  five  knots  tied  in  its  foliage 
lay  across  the  breast.^ 

On  the  reception  of  the  news  in  England,  great 
enthusiasm  on  behalf  of  the  mission  was  called  forth.  The 
mission  was  referred  to  in  the  Queen's  Speech  at  the  open- 
ing of  Parhament  in  1872.  Max  Miiller,  writing  to  the 
Times,  said :  "  To  have  known  such  a  man  is  one  of  life's 
greatest  blessings";  the  name  of  Patteson  will  "live  in 
every  cottage,  in  every  school  and  church  in  Melanesia, 
not  as  the  name  of  a  fabulous  saint  or  martyr,  but  as  the 
never-to-be-forgotten  name  of  a  good,  brave,  God-fearing, 
and  God-loving  man.  His  bones  will  not  work  childish 
miracles,  but  his  spirit  will  work  signs  and  wonders  by 
revealing  even  among  the  lowest  of  Melanesian  savages  the 
indelible  God-like  stamp  of  human  nature,  and  by  up- 
holding among  future  generations  a  true  faith  in  God, 
founded  on  a  true  faith  in  man." 

Amongst  other  qualifications  which  Bishop  Patteson 
possessed  was  a  marvellous  capacity  for  learning  the 
Melanesian  dialects.  He  was  credited  with  being  able  to 
speak  forty.  The  multiplicity  of  these  dialects  adds  greatly 
to  the  difficulties  with  which  the  missionaries  working  in 
these  islands  are  confronted. 

The  S.P.G.  issued  an  appeal  for  a  memorial  to  Bishop 
Patteson  which  should  endow  the  bishopric,  build  a  church 
at  Norfolk  Island,  and  provide  a  new  mission  ship,  in 
response  to  which  more  than  £6000   was  subscribed. 

In  1877  John  Selwyn,  a  son  of  the  first  Bishop  of 
New  Zealand,  was  consecrated  as  successor  to  Patteson. 
In  1880  Bishop  Selwyn  was  able  to  visit  Santa  Cruz,  and 
eventually  mission  work  was  established  at  Nukapu.  In 
consequence  of  ill-health,  brought  on  by  his  arduous  work, 
he  was  compelled  to  resign  in  1890. 

In  1895,  when  Bishop  Montgomery  (then  Bishop  of 
Tasmania)  visited  the  mission,  there  were  1 2  European  and 

1  This  palm  frond  is  now  preserved  in  the  chapel  of  the  S.P.G.  Mission 
House, 


456  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

9  native  clergy,  8929  baptized  Christians,  12,183  scholars, 
122  schools,  and  381  teachers. 

In  1912  one  of  the  European  missionaries,  the  Eev. 
C.  C.  Godden,  was  murdered  by  a  native  at  Opa  in  the 
New  Hebrides. 

In  addition  to  the  school  on  Norfolk  Island  the 
Melanesian  Mission  has  opened  a  training  centre  in  the 
Solomon  Islands.  It  is  endeavouring  to  place  a  resident 
missionary  on  each  of  the  islands  within  its  sphere  of 
influence. 

The  three  islands  in  the  Northern  Hebrides  which  are 
under  the  charge  of  the  mission  have  in  them  2286 
baptized  Christians  and  about  1000  more  in  the  schools. 
In  the  Banks  Islands,  where  there  are  but  few  heathen  left, 
there  are  3135  baptized  and  600  hearers.  The  last  of 
the  four  Torres  Islands  has  lately  accepted  Christianity. 
In  these  islands  there  are  470  baptized  and  100  hearers. 
In  Santa  Cruz  and  the  Reef  Islands  there  are  only  106 
baptized  and  106  hearers.  In  the  Solomon  Islands  great 
progress  has  been  made,  and  there  are  8415  baptized  and 
3000  hearers. 

The  present  staff  of  the  mission  includes  20  European 
and  16  local  clergy,  6  laymen  and  12  women  missionaries. 
There  are  350  schools  and  760  teachers. 

The  population  of  English-speaking  people  in  the 
islands  which  are  included  in  the  diocese  is  about  700, 
and  the  islanders  number  about  300,000. 

We  have  so  far  only  referred  to  the  work  of  the 
Anglican  Mission  to  Melanesia,  but  the  work  done  by  other 
missions  has  been  at  least  equally  productive  of  results. 
In  1839  John  Williams,  the  well-known  L.M.S.  missionary, 
to  whose  work  we  have  already  referred,  landed  in 
Erromanga  in  the  New  Hebrides,  but  he  and  his  companion 
were  almost  immediately  murdered.  For  many  years  the 
task  of  evangelizing  these  islands  proved  exceptionally 
difficult,  and  up  to  1856  over  50  missionaries  white  or 
coloured  had  died  or  had  been  murdered  by  their  in- 
habitants.     In     1848     a     Presbyterian     missionary,     the 


ISLES    OF   THE   PACIFIC  457 

Kev.  J.  Geddie,  succeeded  in  starting  work  at  Aneityum, 
and  within  ten  years  this  island  had  not  only  become 
Christian  but  had  begun  to  send  out  native  evangelists  to 
other  islands  farther  to  the  north.  In  1858  the  Eev. 
J.  G.  Paton  of  the  United  Presbyterian  Mission  started 
work  at  Tanna,  from  which  he  shortly  afterwards  moved 
to  Aniwa,  which  he  lived  to  see  completely  evangelized. 

His  name  is  connected  with  some  of  the  noblest  and 
most  heroic  work  that  has  been  accomplished  in  the 
South  Seas,  and  the  record  of  his  life's  work  has  been 
an  inspiration  to  many.     In   1906   he  wrote : 

"As  the  results  of  the  missionary  work  in  the  New 
Hebrides  our  dear  Lord  has  given  our  missionaries  about 
20,000  converts,  and  the  blessed  work  is  extending  among 
the  other  cannibals.  ...  In  one  year  1120  savages  re- 
nounced idolatry  and  embraced  the  worship  and  service  of 
Christ.  .  .  .  We  never  baptize  and  teach  afterward,  but 
educate  and  wait  till  they  give  real  evidence  of  consecration 
to  Jesus  Christ,  and  then,  at  their  desire,  baptize  and 
continue  teaching  them  to  observe  in  their  life  and  conduct 
all  things  Jesus  has  commanded.  .  .  .  All  of  the  converts 
attend  church  regularly.  They  contributed  last  year  over 
£1300  in  money  and  arrowroot,  and  a  number  of  the  islands 
now  support  their  own  native  teachers."  ^ 

In  addition  to  the  islands  in  the  New  Hebrides  to 
which  we  have  already  referred,  Erromanga,  Efate  Nguna, 
and  Tongoa  have  now  become  entirely  Christian,  while 
Futuna,  Epi,  and  Paama  are  fast  becoming  Christian. 
In  Tanna,  Amhrim,  Malehula,  and  Santo  the  majority  of 
the  inhabitants  are  still  heathen. 

A  Eoman  Catholic  mission  was  begun  in  the  French 
New  Hebrides  in  1887,  and  a  bishop  resides  at  Port-Vila. 
The  staff  of  the  mission  consists  of  26  priests  and  3  lay 
brothers  of  the  Lyons  Society  of  Mary.  The  number  of 
converts  is  about  1000. 

The  Solomon  Islands  include  several  islands  of  consider- 
able   size,  namely,    Malaita,    Guadalcanar,    San   Cristoval, 

^  The  Pacific  Islanders,  p.  138  f. 


458  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

Bougainville,  and  Bugotu.  The  first  attempt  to  evangelize 
their  inhabitants,  who  were  notorious  "  head-hunters,"  was 
made  by  E.G.  missionaries  belonging  to  the  Society  of  Mary. 

In  1845  eighteen  missionaries  under  Bishop  Epalle 
tried  to  evangelize  the  Solomon  group.  On  December  12, 
the  bishop,  three  priests,  and  some  sailors  landed  on 
Ysabely  but  were  suddenly  attacked.  The  bishop  was 
killed  and  one  priest  and  one  seaman  were  dangerously 
wounded.  Soon  afterwards  three  priests  were  killed  and 
eaten  in  San  Cristoval,  and  the  work  was  eventually 
abandoned.  It  was  resumed  in  1898,  when  three  priests 
landed  at  Eua  Sura,  near  Guadalcanar.  There  are  now 
17  priests  and  10  sisters  at  work  in  the  Solomon  group. 

Later  on  the  Solomon  Islands  became  one  of  the  chief 
spheres  of  work  of  the  Anglican  Melanesian  Mission.  The 
proposed  transfer  of  the  centre  of  this  mission  from  Norfolk 
Island  to  the  Solomon  group  should  do  much  to  strengthen 
and  develop  its  work.  The  Methodist  Missionary 
Society  has  had  work  in  the  island  of  New  Georgia  since 
1902,  and  the  South  Sea  Evangelical  Mission,  which  is 
chiefly  supported  by  the  "  Brethren,"  has  work  amongst 
the  Kanakas  who  have  been  repatriated  from  Australia. 
Comparatively  little  work,  however,  has  been  done  in 
the  Solomon  group,  and  of  the  total  population  of  about 
180,000  only  10,000  have  as  yet  been  influenced 
by  Christian  missionaries.  In  Mala,  the  most  populous 
island,  the  majority  of  the  inhabitants  are  still  cannibals. 
Guadalcanar  and  San  Cristoval  are  also  heathen.  Bugotu 
is  mainly  Christian  and  Gela  is  at  least  nominally  Christian. 
Many  of  the  Kanaka  labourers  who  had  been  evangelized 
whilst  working  in  Queensland  have  helped  to  spread  the 
Christian  faith  in  the  islands  to  which  they  have  returned. 

Micronesia. 

The  principal  groups  of  islands  which  are  included  in 
Micronesia  are  the  Gilbert,  Mlice,  Marshall,  Caroline,  and 
Zadrone  or  Marianne  Islands.     The  first  two  groups  are 


ISLES    OF   THE    PACIFIC  459 

British  and  the  last  three  were  German  prior  to  1914. 
Guam,  in  the  last  group,  belongs  to  the  U.S.A. 

The  Protestant  missions  throughout  Micronesia  are 
carried  on  by  the  A.B.C.F.M.  at  67  stations.  This  society 
employs  25  American  and  200  native  missionaries. 
There  are  altogether  about  20,000  professed  Christians, 
rather  less  than  half  being  communicants.  The  L.M.S. 
has  a  station  in  the  Ellice  Islands. 

The  E.G.  missions  are  carried  on  by  the  Order  of  the 
Sacred  Heart. 

Of  the  30,000  Christians  in  Micronesia  about  18,000 
are  Protestants  and  12,000  Eoman  Catholics. 

Since  1852  missionary  work  has  been  carried  on 
throughout  a  great  part  of  Micronesia  (with  the  exception 
of  the  Ladrones)  by  the  Hawaiian  Evangelical  Association, 
whcch  is  under  the  superintendence  of  the  American 
Board.  The  work  is  mainly  conducted  by  local  teachers, 
of  whom  about  30  are  ordained.  They  are  superintended 
by  9  American  missionaries. 

The  Gilbert  Islands,  which  lie  across  the  Equator,  contain 
a  population  of  25,000.  The  islands  north  of  the  Equator 
were  evangeHzedby  the  A.B.C.F.M.,  the  first  of  whose  mission- 
aries began  work  in  1857.  Christianity  was  first  preached 
in  the  Ellice  Islands,  which  lie  to  the  south  of  the  Gilbert 
Islands,  by  a  native,  Elikana,  in  the  employ  of  the  L.M.S., 
who,  after  drifting  in  a  canoe  for  eight  weeks  a  distance  of 
1800  miles  from  the  Cook  Islands,  landed  with  four  others 
at  Nukulaelae.  He  was  kindly  received  by  the  inhabitants, 
to  whom  he  preached  the  Christian  faith  with  great  success. 

All  the  islands  in  these  two  groups  have  now  been 
evangelized.  On  Ocean  Island  the  A.B.C.F.M.  has  started 
a  training  school  for  native  teachers.  The  Marshall 
Islands  include  24  lagoon  islands,  of  which  the  most 
important  are  Ebon  and  Jalut,  and  have  a  population  of 
about  15,000.  The  centre  from  which  the  missionary 
work  in  the  Gilbert  and  Marshall  Islands  is  superintended 
is  Kusaie  in  the  Carolines. 

The   Caroline  Islands  number  about  500  and  contain  a 


460  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

population  of  about  140,000.  They  were  annexed  by  Spain 
in  1686,  but  practically  abandoned  by  her  until  1885,  when 
Protestant  missionary  work  had  been  established  in  them. 
The  first  Protestant  missionaries  sent  by  the  A.B.C.F.M. 
arrived  in  1852.  A  large  amount  of  good  work  had  been 
accomplished  in  Kusaie,  Ponape,  and  other  islands,  but  on  the 
arrival  of  the  representatives  of  the  Spanish  Government 
the  mission  schools  were  closed,  the  church  services  were  dis- 
continued, and  the  people  were  encouraged  to  manufacture 
intoxicating  drinks.  In  1890  the  mission  buildings  were 
destroyed  and  the  missionaries  were  banished.  In  1900, 
when  the  islands  were  ceded  to  Germany,  the  Protestant 
missionaries  were  allowed  to  return,  and  since  then  the  work 
has  made  good  progress. 

In  the  Ladrone  Islands,  which  contain  a  population  of 
about  2000,  the  only  missions  are  those  of  the  E.G. 
Church,  except  in  the  island  of  Guam. 

In  1668  the  Queen  Eegent  of  Spain  sent  missionaries 
to  evangelize  the  Ladrones.  The  seven  missionaries  who 
reached  Guam  in  1669  "  taught  and  baptized  6000  persons 
during  the  first  year."  Their  leader  was  killed  after  three 
years  for  baptizing  the  chief's  child  without  his  consent. 
The  Ladrone  Islands  eventually  became  nominally  Christian, 
but  the  conversion  of  its  peoples  was  of  a  superficial 
character,  and  many  heathen  superstitions  survived.  More- 
over, the  acceptance  of  Christianity  failed  to  effect  any 
great  improvement  in  the  moral  character  of  the  people. 
On  June  24,  1908,  the  U.S.A.  took  possession  of  Guam,  and 
in  1900  missionaries  sent  by  the  A.B.C.F.M.  arrived.  The 
work  which  they  have  initiated  has  already  met  with 
considerable  success,  and  although  it  has  been  bitterly 
opposed  by  the  representatives  of  the  E.C.  Church,  it  has 
reacted  beneficially  upon  the  E.C.  Mission.  More  instruc- 
tion is  now  being  given  to  the  people  by  the  E.C.  mission- 
aries and  a  higher  standard  of  conduct  is  being  inculcated. 
The  population  of  Guam  is  about  10,000,  of  whom  7000 
live  in  the  capital,  Agana.  A  large  number  of  the 
inhabitants  are  of  mixed  Spanish  descent. 


ISLES    OF   THE   PACIFIC  463 

New  Caledonia,  which  is  the  largest  island  in  the 
South  Seas,  with  the  exception  of  New  Guinea,  has  for 
many  years  been  used  by  the  French  as  a  convict  settle- 
ment. Its  population  includes  16,000  aboriginal  in- 
habitants and  about  3000  Japanese.  The  French  E.G. 
Mission  is  under  the  charge  of  the  Marist  Fathers.  There 
are  48  missionary  priests  who  minister  to  11,500  non- 
European  Gatholics. 

There  are  also  a  French  Protestant  mission  and  a  small 
Baptist  mission. 

The  Bismarck  Archipelago,  which  lies  to  the  east  of 
New  Guinea,  became  a  German  protectorate  in  1884. 
The  largest  island  in  the  archipelago  is  New  Britain 
(re-named  by  the  Germans  New  Pomerania),  which  has  a 
population  of  about  190,000,  of  whom  about  500  are 
Europeans.  Since  1875  the  Australian  Wesleyans  have 
carried  on  missions,  chiefly  staffed  by  evangelists  from 
Fiji  and  Tonga,  in  the  islands  of  New  Pomerania,  New 
Laue7iburg,  and  New  Mecklenhurg.  The  pioneer  of  the 
mission  was  Dr.  George  Brown,  who,  with  his  band  of 
Christians,  landed  on  the  Duke  of  York  Island,  which 
was  inhabited  by  cannibals.  Three  of  the  Fiji  Christians 
were  killed  and  eaten,  but  their  places  were  immediately 
filled  by  eager  volunteers.  After  less  than  forty  years' 
work  the  mission  was  able  to  report  189  churches, 
200  catechists  and  teachers,  3600  full  members,  and 
21,000  adherents  or  hearers.  The  Christians,  who  are 
extremely  poor,  contribute  nearly  £2000  per  annum 
towards  the  support  of  the  mission  work.  At  the  George 
Brown  College  at  Ulu  80  students  are  being  trained 
to  become  preachers  or  teachers.  In  the  mission  schools 
instruction  is  also  given  in  various  forms  of  industrial 
work. 

A  E.G.  mission  was  started  in  1889  and  entrusted  to 
the  missionaries  of  the  Sacred  Heart  of  Issoudun.  There 
are  28  missionaries,  40  brothers,  27  sisters,  and  about 
15,000  Eoman  Catholics. 

Of    the    total   population    of    the    archipelago,    about 


462 


HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 


210,000,    only    40,000    are    at   present   reached   by   the 
Wesleyan  and  E.G.  missions. 

B.C.  Missions. — The  following  table  shows  the  number 
of  E.G.  dioceses  or  bishopries  in  the  South  Seas : — 


Year. 

Priests. 

Christians. 

Marianne  and  Caroline  Islands     . 

1886 

16 

4,730 

Guam 

1911 

6 

12,000 

New  Pomerania    . 

1889 

37 

20,417 

North  Soloman  Islands 

1898 

12 

480 

South  Solomon  Islands 

1897 

16 

3,000 

New  Hebrides 

1901 

26 

1,500 

New  Caledonia 

1847 

57 

10,783 

Marshall  Islands  . 

1905 

6 

730 

Gilbert  Islands      . 

1897 

23 

14,037 

Fiji        .        .        . 

1863 

33 

12,000 

Oceania,  Central   . 

1842 

281 

9,940 

Samoa   . 

1851 

241 

7,854 

Sandwich  Islands 

1848 

37 

15,000 

Marquesas  Islands 

1848 

9 

2,488 

Tahiti   . 

1833 

30 

6,800 

1  Including  four  native  priests. 


New  Guinea. 

New  Guinea,  or  Papua,  as  it  is  now  commonly  called, 
was  discovered  by  the  Dutch  in  the  fourteenth  century. 
In  1848  they  took  possession  of  its  western  half.  In 
1884  the  eastern  part  was  divided  between  Great  Britain 
and  Germany,  and  in  1906  the  British  portion  was 
transferred  to  the  Gommon wealth  of  Australia. 

In  British  New  Guinea  missionary  work  was  begun 
by  the  L.M.S.  in  1871.  In  the  first  instance,  native 
Ghristians  who  had  volunteered  for  this  hazardous  enter- 
prise from  Lifu,  Samoa,  Niu^,  and  Earatonga  were  stationed 
at  selected  points. 

The  heroic  deeds  done  by  the  native  Christians  would 
take  long  to  recount.  When  an  invitation  was  given  to 
the  Ghristians  in  Lifu  to  take  part  in  the  mission,  every 
student  in  the  missionary  college  and   every    teacher  in 


ISLES   OF   THE   PACIFIC  463 

the  island  volunteered.  During  the  first  twenty  years 
of  the  mission  120  Polynesian  teachers  died  of  fever,  or 
were  poisoned,  or  murdered.  It  would  be  bard  to  find  a 
parallel  to  their  self-sacrifice  in  the  whole  history  of 
Christian  missions. 

In  1874  the  Eev.  W.  G.  Lawes,  the  pioneer  of  the 
L.M.S.  Mission,  settled  at  Port  Moresby,  where  he  was 
joined  by  the  Eev.  James  Chalmers  in  1877.  Chalmers,  or 
"  Tamate,"  as  the  islanders  called  him,  had  already  worked 
for  ten  years  on  Earatonga  Island  before  coming  to  New 
Guinea.  Here  he  acted  as  a  pioneer  and  organizer,  and 
soon  gained  a  marvellous  influence  over  the  fiercest  and 
least  approachable  of  the  local  tribes.  "No  white  man 
had  ever  had  a  more  wide  and  varied  knowledge  of  the 
mainland  of  New  Guinea,  or  visited  more  tribes,  or  made 
more  friends,  or  endured  more  hardships,  or  faced  more 
perils."  ^ 

On  April  7,  1901,  he  landed  at  the  Aird  Eiver  with 
a  colleague,  the  Eev.  Oliver  Tomkins,  and  twelve  students, 
when  the  whole  party  were  killed  and  eaten  by  the  in- 
habitants. E.  L.  Stevenson  had  written  to  Chalmers' 
mother :  "  I  shall  meet  Tamate  once  more  before  he 
disappears  up  the  Fly  Eiver,  perhaps  to  be  one  of  the 
unreturned  brave:  he  is  a  man  nobody  can  see  and  not 
love.  He  has  plenty  of  faults  like  the  rest  of  us,  but  he 
is  as  big  as  a  church." 

In  1881  the  first  converts  of  the  L.M.S.  Mission  were 
baptized,  and  since  then  steady  progress  has  been  main- 
tained. The  sphere  of  the  L.M.S.  Mission  is  the  south 
coast  of  British  New  Guinea.  There  are  15  English 
missionaries  and  148  local  preachers,  1355  church 
members,  and  about  7000  adherents.  At  Kwato  a  suc- 
cessful industrial  mission  has  been  established. 

An  Anglican  mission  was  established  on  the  north 
coast  in  1881,  the  pioneer  missionaries  being  the  Eev. 
A.    A.  Maclaren  and  the  Eev.   Copland  King.     The  first 

^  "James  Chalmers,   the    'Greatheart*   of   New  Guinea,"   by  George 
Robson,  The  Pacific  Islanders,  p.  292. 


464  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

station  occupied  was  at  Dogura  in  Bartle  Bay.  In  1891 
Maclaren  died,  worn  out  by  his  hard  and  unremitting 
labours.  A  bishop  was  appointed  in  1897,  and  the  work 
has  since  steadily  expanded.  There  are  22  European 
missionaries  and  29  Papuan  teachers,  650  persons  have 
been  baptized,  and  there  are  about  5000  hearers  or 
adherents.     Two  Papuans  have  been  ordained. 

A  Wesleyan  mission  was  commenced  in  1881  on  the 
islands  off  the  south-east  coast,  the  first  island  to  be 
occupied  being  Dobu.  Several  of  the  missionaries  had 
already  had  experience  of  missionary  work  in  Polynesia. 
The  work  has  made  steady  progress,  and  there  are  no'W 
6  missionaries,  7  lay  missionaries,  74  Papuan  preachers, 
909  church  members,  and  22,000  attendants  at  public 
worship. 

A  E.G.  mission  was  begun  in  New  Guinea  in 
1889,  when  a  Yicar  Apostolic  was  appointed.  He  was 
assisted  by  priests,  brothers,  and  sisters  belonging  to  the 
Order  of  the  Sacred  Heart  of  Issoudun.  In  British  New 
Guinea  there  are  26  missionaries,  21  brothers,  38  sisters, 
and  1500  Catholics. 

In  German  New  Guinea  a  mission  which  was  started 
by  the  Lutheran  Church  in  1880  has  a  staff  of  18  clergy 
and  one  medical  missionary.  It  reports  850  members 
and  300  scholars  in  its  nine  schools. 

In  Dutch  New  Guinea,  the  E.C.  Mission,  which  was 
started  in  1889,  became  a  separate  vicariate  in  1902.  Its 
staff  consists  of  20  Fathers  and  15  lay  brothers  belonging 
to  the  Order  of  the  Sacred  Heart,  and  10  sisters  belonging 
to  Our  Lady  of  the  Sacred  Heart.  The  Eoman  Catholics 
number  about  3500. 

Some  Dutch  Protestant  ministers  have  endeavoured  to 
evangelize  the  inhabitants  at  three  or  four  places  on  the 
coast. 


XXL 

MISSIONS  TO  MOSLEMS. 

Keference  has  already  been  made  to  the  missions  to 
Moslems  which  are  being  carried  on  in  different  parts  of 
the  mission  field,  but  it  may  be  well  to  add  a  few  notes 
dealing  with  these  missions  as  a  whole. 

Distribution  of  the  Moslem  population. 

According  to  the  latest  estimates  made  by  Dr.  S.  M. 
Zwemer  and  Professor  D.  Wester mann,  the  total  population 
of  the  Moslem  world  is  about  200,000,000,  and  is  distri- 
buted as  follows : 

In  Europe  there  are  2,373,676,  most  of  whom  are  to 
be  found  in  Turkey,  Austria-Hungary,  and  the  Balkan 
States. 

In  the  Eussian  Empire  there  are  about  20,000. 

In  South  America  there  are  159,511,  principally  in 
Brazil,  British  and  Dutch  Guiana,  and  Trinidad. 

In  Africa  there  are  42,000,000.  About  half  of  these 
are  north  of  the  twentieth  parallel  of  latitude,  but  Islam 
is  encroaching  upon  the  pagan  tribes,  and  in  South  Africa 
has  already  53,000  adherents. 

In  Asia  the  following  countries  are  wholly  Moham- 
medan:  Arabia,  Persia,  Afghanistan,  Bokhara,  Khiva, 
Baluchistan. 

The  number  in  China  is  uncertain,  and  is  somewhere 
between  5,000,000  and  8,500,000. 

In     India     there     are     66,577,247;     in     Malaysia, 
35,308,996. 
30 


466  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

In  Australia  there  are  19,500  ;  and  in  the  Philippine 
Islands,  277,547. 

Of  the  total  Moslem  population  over  167,000,000 
were  under  Christian  rule  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
European  War.  The  estimated  total  (200,000,000)  is 
nearly  30,000,000  less  than  that  given  at  the  Cairo  Con- 
ference, and  is  100,000,000  less  than  that  given  by  the 
Moslem  press  of  Cairo,  but  it  is  based  for  the  most  part 
on  official  government  statistics,  and  is  a  more  accurate 
estimate  than  either  of  the  latter.^ 


Early  missionaries  to  Moslems. 

John  Damascene  (d.  754),  who  h^ld  office  under  the 
Caliph  of  Damascus,  wrote  a  book  entitled  The  Superstition 
of  the  Ishmaelites.  Al  Kindi  wrote  (circ.  830)  an  Apology 
for  Christianity,  which  has  often  been  translated  and  circu- 
lated by  Christian  missionaries.  Petrus  Venerabihs,  a 
Benedictine  abbot  of  Clugny  (d.  1157),  translated  the 
Koran  and  pleaded  for  a  translation  of  the  Bible  into 
Arabic.  He  condemned  the  Crusades,  and  wrote  :  "  I  come 
to  win  the  Moslem,  not  as  people  oft  do  with  arms,  but 
with  words ;  not  by  force,  but  by  reason ;  not  in  hatred, 
but  in  love."^  St.  Francis  d'Assisi  (d.  1226)  sailed  to 
Egypt  in  1219  and  endeavoured  to  preach  the  Gospel  to 
the  Sultan,  El  Kamil,  but  with  no  apparent  success. 
Eaymond  Lull,  who  was  born  in  Majorca  in  1235,  was 
inspired  by  the  example  of  Francis  d'Assisi  to  become  a 
missionary  to  Moslems.  For  many  years  he  laboured  in 
vain  to  persuade  the  representatives  of  the  Church,  the 
Pope  included,  that  the  policy  of  the  Crusades  was  anti- 
Christian,  and  to  interest  them  in  schemes  for  developing 
missions  to  Moslems.  Having  purchased  a  Moslem  slave, 
he  studied  Arabic  with  his  assistance  for  nine  years.  He 
afterwards  preached  for  two  years  in  Tunis,  where  he  was 
imprisoned,   sentenced    to     death,    and     finally     banished. 

1  See  The  Moslem  World,  April  1914. 

2  See  The  Reproach  of  Mam,  by  W.  H.  T.  Gairdner,  p.  224. 


MISSIONS   TO   MOSLEMS  467 

Later  on  he  spent  a  year  and  a  half  at  Bugia  in  Algeria, 
where  he  made  several  converts.  Here  he  was  again 
imprisoned,  and  eventually  deported  to  Italy.  Eeturning 
again  to  Bugia  when  eighty  years  of  age,  he  encouraged 
his  converts  for  a  year,  but  was  eventually  stoned  to  death 
by  a  mob  in  1315.^ 

We  have  already  referred  to  the  attempt  made  by 
Ignatius  Loyola  to  preach  to  Moslems  in  Jerusalem  (p.  69), 
and  to  the  work  of  Geronimo  Xavier  at  the  court  of  Akbar 
in  North  India  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth 
century  (p.  77). 

Modern  Missions  to  Moslems. 

Early  in  the  nineteenth  century  Henry  Martyn  en- 
deavoured to  preach  to  Moslems  in  India  and  in  Persia 
(p.  84).  His  work  in  Persia  was  eventually  taken  up  and 
continued  by  Pfander  and  others  (p.  273). 

Keferences  to  the  missions  to  Moslems  which  are  being 
carried  on  in  Persia,  Asia  Minor,  North,  East,  and  West 
Africa,  India,  Arabia,  and  Malaysia  will  be  found  under 
these  several  countries.  Judged  by  visible  results,  the 
missions  in  Java  and  Sumatra,  where  there  are  now  over 
40,000  converts  from  Islam,  have  been  the  most  successful. 
The  most  important  mission  from  a  strategic  standpoint  is 
perhaps  the  C.M.S.  mission  at  Cairo.  The  missionaries 
here  are  brought  into  touch  with  Moslem  students,  who 
come  from  many  lands  to  attend  the  great  Al  Azhar 
University.  "  There,"  writes  Mr.  Gairdner,  "  you  see  black 
Sudanese  from  Hausaland  or  the  Gambia  river,  browny- 
yellow  skinned  Maghrabis  from  Morocco,  fair  pink-and- 
white  Turks  from  Stamboul,  almond-eyed  Mongoloids  from 
far  Kussian  Siberia  and  Turkestan,  and  many  more.  In  the 
memory  of  living  men  no  Christian  could  do  so  much  as 
enter  that  place ;  now  they  enter  unmolested.     Students 

^  For  a  sketch  of  his  life  and  writings  see  Raymond  Lull,  First  Missionaiy 
to  the  Moslems,  by  S.  M.  Zvvemer,  1902,  and  Raymond  Lull,  the  Illuminated 
Doctor,  by  W.  T.  Barber,  1D03, 


468  HISTORY  OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

and  ex-students  have  been  converted  to  Christ,  and  not  a 
few  students  have,  as  they  paced  or  sat  apart,  studied  there, 
not  the  Koran,  but  the  Injil  Yasu'  al  Masih."  ^ 

The  American  United  Presbyterian  Mission  has  for 
some  time  past  been  trying  to  promote  the  establishment 
of  a  Christian  university  in  Cairo,  the  establishment  of 
which  would  be  a  great  boon  to  the  Christian  community 
in  Egypt  and  eventually  to  the  cause  of  missions. 

An  American  professor  who  has  made  a  special  study 
of  the  religion  of  the  Egyptian  dervishes  has  maintained 
that  Sufi  mysticism,  by  which  many  of  them  have  been 
deeply  influenced,  "has  come  to  be  really  the  ultimate,  the 
final  basis  for  all  thoughtful  religion  in  Islam."  ^  Even  if 
this  statement  be  correct,  it  does  not  indicate  that  the 
task  of  the  Christian  missionary  is  likely  on  this  account 
to  become  less  arduous  than  it  has  been  in  the  past. 

It  has,  indeed,  been  suggested  that  inasmuch  as  love 
occupies  the  central  place  in  Sufi  mysticism,  this  form  of 
Mohammedan  teaching  may  eventually  serve  as  a  bridge 
between  Islam  and  Christianity.  This  might  be  the  case 
were  it  not  for  the  pantheistic  tendencies  of  Sufi  mysticism. 
The  Sufi  mystic  seeks  God  within  himself  and  finds  Him 
everywhere,  and  God  ceases  to  be  a  personality.  Although 
he  acknowledges  an  obligation  to  love  his  neighbour 
because  God  is  present  in  him,  he  loves  himself  because  he, 
too,  is  part  of  the  divine  being.  The  most  unsatisfactory 
outcome  of  the  teaching  of  Sufi  mysticism  is  that  the 
mystic  regards  himself  as  not  only  above  all  ceremonial  but 
above  all  moral  law.  It  is  obvious,  therefore,  that  although 
in  individual  cases  the  constant  contemplation  of  the  love 
of  God  may  help  to  render  intelligible  the  doctrine  of  the 
love  of  God  revealed  in  Christ,  it  is  not  likely  that  the 
spread  of  Sufi  doctrines,  whether  in  Egypt  or  India,  will 
pave  the  way  for  the  spread  of  Christian  missions. 

In  view  of  the  close  connection  between  politics  and 
religion  which  exists  in  the  minds  of  Moslems,  the  loss  of 

^  The  Reproach  of  Islam,  p.  268  f. 

^Aspects  of  Islam,  by  D.  B.  Macdonald,  1911,  p.  149. 


MISSIONS   TO   MOSLEMS  469 

political  power  by  Moslem  rulers  which  has  recently- 
occurred  is  likely  to  have  a  profound  influence  upon  the 
prestige  of  Islam.  The  French  occupation  of  Morocco, 
the  Italian  conquest  of  Tripoli,  the  Anglo-Eussian  agree- 
ment in  regard  to  Persia,  the  defeat  of  Turkey  by  the 
Balkan  States,  and,  lastly,  its  suicidal  participation  in  the 
European  War,  followed  by  the  dethronement  of  the  Khe- 
dive, constitute  a  series  of  events  without  parallel  in  the 
history  of  Islam.  The  Amir  of  Afghanistan  is  now  the 
only  really  independent  Moslem  ruler  in  the  world,  and 
the  population  over  which  he  rules  is  probably  less  than 
5,000,000. 

During  the  greater  part  of  the  time  which  has  elapsed 
since  the  establishment  of  modern  Christian  missions, 
India  and  the  Dutch  East  Indies  have  been  practically 
the  only  countries  in  which  it  has  been  possible  for  a 
Moslem  to  acknowledge  himself  a  Christian  without  facing 
the  almost  certain  prospect  of  being  murdered.  Even  in 
India  the  converts  from  Islam  have,  as  a  general  rule,  had 
to  submit  to  the  loss  of  all  their  property  and  of  their 
wives  and  children.  The  mere  fact,  therefore,  that  it  is 
not  possible  to  point  to  the  conversion  of  large  numbers  of 
Moslems  affords  no  argument  that  the  contest  between 
Christianity  and  Islam  has  been  decided  and  that  Chris- 
tianity has  sustained  a  defeat.  We  should  have  much 
less  respect  for  the  Mohammedan  faith  than  we  now  have 
if,  with  the  slight  knowledge  of  Christianity  which  most 
of  its  adherents  at  present  possess,  any  number  of  them 
were  prepared  to  forsake  their  ancestral  faith  in  order  to 
embrace  its  rival.  That  which  is  calculated  to  create 
surprise  is  the  measure  of  success  which  Christian  mission- 
aries have  attained  in  India,  and  the  encouraging  prospect 
which  is  opened  before  them  both  there  and  elsewhere. 

Eeferring  to  the  prospects  of  Moslem  missions  in 
India,  Dr.  Wherry  writes  : 

"  The  accessions  from  Islam,  especially  in  Northern 
India,  have  been  continuous  during  all  the  years  since  the 
death  of  Henry  Martyn.     One  here  and  another  there  has 


470  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

been  added  to  the  Christian  Church,  so  that  now,  as  one 
looks  over  the  rolls  of  Church  membership,  he  is  surprised 
to  find  so  many  converts  from  Islam,  or  the  children  and 
children's  children  of  such  converts.  In  the  North,  especially 
in  the  Punjab  and  the  North-West  Province,  every  congre- 
gation has  a  representative  from  the  Moslem  ranks.  Some 
of  the  Churches  have  a  majority  of  their  membership 
gathered  from  amongst  the  Mussulmans.  In  a  few  cases 
there  has  been  something  like  a  movement  towards  Chris- 
tianity, and  a  considerable  number  have  come  out  at  one 
time.  But  perhaps  the  fact  which  tells  most  clearly  the  story 
of  the  advance  of  Christianity  among  Moslems  in  India,  is 
this,  that  among  the  native  pastors  and  Christian  preachers 
and  teachers  in  North  India  there  are  at  least  two  hundred 
who  were  once  followers  of  Islam."  ^ 

From  the  returns  of  the  last  Indian  census  it  appears 
that  the  increase  in  the  Mohammedan  population  through- 
out the  Indian  Empire  during  the  decade  1901—11  did 
not  quite  keep  pace  with  the  ordinary  increase  of  the 
whole  population. 

Dr.  Imad-ud-din,  in  the  course  of  a  paper  sent  to  be 
read  at  the  religious  conference  held  at  Chicago,  wrote : 
"  There  was  a  time  when  the  conversion  of  a  Mohammedan 
to  Christianity  was  looked  on  as  a  wonder.  Now  they 
have  come  and  are  coming  in  their  thousands."  At  the 
end  of  his  paper  he  appended  a  list  of  117  converts  from 
Islam  to  Christianity  who  at  that  time  were  occupying 
influential  positions  in  the  State  or  in  the  Church  in  India.  ^ 

The  prospect  of  commending  the  Christian  faith  to 
Moslems  was  never  so  bright  as  it  is  at  the  present  time. 
Dr.  Zwemer,  one  of  the  best  known  missionaries  to 
Moslems,  who  is  in  touch  with  work  amongst  them  in  all 
parts  of  the  world,  recently  wrote : 

"Without  in  any  way  underestimating  the  new  anti- 
Christian  attitude  of  some  educated  Moslems  and  the  pan- 

1  India  and  Christianity  in  India  and  the  Far  Hast,  by  E.  M.  Wherry, 
p.  145  f. 

2  A  reprint  of  this  paper  and  of  its  appendix  is  given  in  the  C.M.S. 
Intelligencer  for  August  1893.  The  author  himself  belonged  to  one  of  the 
most  illustrious  Mohammedan  families  in  the  world. 


MISSIONS   TO    MOSLEMS  471 

Islamic  efforts  of  others  to  oppose  Christian  missions  by 
every  modern  method  of  attack  or  defence,  it  yet  remains 
true  that  the  whole  situation  is  hopeful  to  the  last  degree. 
The  light  is  breaking  everywhere.  There  never  was  so 
much  friendliness,  such  willingness  to  discuss  the  question 
at  issue,  such  a  large  attendance  of  Moslems  at  Christian 
schools,  hospitals,  public  meetings,  and  even  preaching 
services  as  there  is  to-day.  .  .  .  What  is  true  of  Egypt  is 
true,  mutatis  mutandis,  of  Turkey,  Persia,  India,  Algeria, 
and  Java,  as  abundant  testimony  and  recent  missionary 
correspondence  could  show.  And  what  does  it  all  mean  ? 
It  means  that  we  should  press  forward  with  all  our  might 
plans  for  the  immediate  evangelization  of  these  educated 
classes.  They  are  adrift,  and  the  Gospel  alone  can  give 
them  new  anchorage.  .  .  .  They  have  lost  faith  in  the  old 
Islam  and  reach  out  to  new  ideals  in  ethics.  Who  can 
satisfy  them  but  Christ  ?  This  is  the  missionary's  supreme 
opportunity.  If  we  can  win  the  leaders  of  Moslem  thought 
now, '  reformed  Islam  will  be  Islam  no  longer,'  but  an  open 
door  into  Christianity."  ^ 

In  support  of  the  above  statement,  we  may  note  that 
during  the  year  preceding  the  outbreak  of  the  European 
War,  the  increase  in  the  number  of  Moslems  attending 
American  missionary  colleges  was  20  per  cent,  and  of 
those  attending  high  schools  40  per  cent. 

If  it  be  true,  as  Dr.  Zwemer  asserts,  that  the  religious 
influence  of  Mohammedanism  is  on  the  decline,  the  inference 
is  obvious.  The  declining  power  of  Islam  involves  the 
increasing  responsibility  of  Christendom.  God  forbid  that 
any  one  should  regard  with  satisfaction  the  waning  power 
of  Islam  as  a  religious  factor  in  the  world,  or  should  do 
anything  to  weaken  the  faith  of  a  single  Moslem  in  his 
Prophet,  who  is  not  himself  prepared  to  offer  him  what  he 
believes  to  be  a  truer  faith  in  its  place.  The  task  of  con- 
verting the  Mohammedan  world  to  Christ  is  indeed  a  hard 
task  but  it  is  not  an  impossible  one.  Eight  centuries  have 
passed  since  Pope  Urban  ii.  stood  in  the  market-place  at 
Clermont  and  explained  to  the  vast  assemblage  there 
collected  the  proposal  which  was  then  under  consideration 

^  See  International  Review  of  Missions,  October  1914. 


472  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

for  attempting  to  crush  by  force  of  arms  the  Mohammedan 
power  of  the  East.  As  those  present  listened  to  his  im- 
passioned appeal  and  to  his  demand  to  sacrifice,  if  need  be, 
their  lives  in  the  campaign  to  which  he  invited  them,  the 
whole  assemblage  exclaimed  with  one  voice,  "  It  is  the  will 
of  God."  "  It  is  indeed  the  will  of  God,"  said  the  Pope ; 
"  take,  then,  this  word  as  your  battle-cry,  and  go  forth  to 
victory  in  the  name  of  Christ."  To  those  who  have  ears 
to  hear,  a  call  comes  not  unsimilar  to  that  which  shook 
Christendom  eight  centuries  ago,  but  it  is  a  call  to  a  nobler 
and  more  difficult  crusade  than  any  which  the  Middle 
Ages  conceived,  to  one,  too,  which  requires  no  less  courage 
and  no  less  perseverance  than  those  which  the  Crusaders 
displayed,  but  in  the  prosecution  of  which  we  too  may  take 
as  our  watchword  with  unfailing  confidence, "  It  is  the  will 
of  God." 

In  responding  to  this  call  and  in  trying  to  preach  the 
Gospel  to  Moslems  and  to  explain  the  half  truths  of  Islam 
in  the  light  of  the  Christian  revelation,  we  may  claim  to  be 
following  in  the  steps  of  their  own  Prophet  and  to  be  acting 
in  accordance  with  the  spirit  by  which,  at  any  rate,  the 
earlier  part  of  his  life  was  inspired.  Voiced  by  the  un- 
conscious needs  of  the  Moslem  world  comes  to  the  Christian 
Church  the  appeal  to  impart  to  it  the  knowledge  of  the 
Christian  faith,  which  Mohammed  himself  never  possessed, 
but  which,  had  he  possessed  it,  he  would  have  spent  his  life 
in  proclaiming. 


XXII. 

MISSIONS   TO   THE  JEWS. 

The  Jewish  population  of  the  world  is  approximately 
12,000,000.  Of  these  over  9,000,000  live  in  Europe 
(5,000,000  in  Eussia,  250,000  in  Great  Britain)  and 
2,211,000  in  America.  Palestine  contains  100,000,  New 
York  City  1,000,000,  London  140,000,  Berlin  100,000, 
Chicago  185,000.  There  are  a  certain  number  of  Jews 
who  are  Jews  by  faith  but  not  by  race.  The  Beni-Israel 
who  settled  in  India  in  the  first  century  a.d.  gained  a 
number  of  converts  the  descendants  of  whom  are  the 
"Black  Jews"  of  Cochin.  There  are  3000  Karaite  Jews 
in  the  Crimea  who  are  of  Tartar  origin  and  a  number  of 
negro  Jews  at  Loango  in  West  Africa. 

It  has  often  been  asserted  that  no  missionary  work 
has  been  less  fruitful  in  result  than  that  which  has  been 
carried  on  amongst  the  Jews.  This  statement  is  not, 
however,  supported  by  statistics.      Dr.  E.  Stock  writes : 

"  Eelatively  to  the  numbers  of  the  Jewish  race  the  con- 
verts are  as  numerous  as  those  from  the  heathen  and  much 
more  than  those  from  the  Mohammedans.  It  is  estimated 
that  quite  250  Anglican  clergymen  are  converted  Jews 
or  the  sons  of  converted  Jews.  The  London  Jews  Society 
alone  has  93  on  its  missionary  staff.  .  .  .  Professor  Delitzsch 
estimated  that  100,000  Jews  had  been  baptized  in  the  first 
three-quarters  of  the  nineteenth  century,  and  Dr.  Dalman  of 
Leipsic  has  remarked  that  'if  all  the  Jews  who  have 
embraced  Christianity  had  remained  a  distinct  people, 
instead  of  being  absorbed  by  the  nations  among  whom  they 

473 


474  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

dwelt,    their    descendants    would    now    be    counted     by 
millions.' "  ^ 

The  chief  British  societies  working  amongst  Jews  are 
the  London  Society  for  promoting  Christianity  among  the 
Jews  (1809),  which  supports  work  in  Great  Britain, 
the  continent  of  Europe,  North  Africa,  Turkey,  byria, 
Palestine,  and  Persia ;  the  Parochial  Mission  to  the  Jews 
(1875)  and  the  Barbican  Mission,  working  in  East  London; 
the  Mildmay  Mission  to  the  Jews  (1876),  which  works  in 
London  and  abroad  ;  and  the  Jerusalem  and  the  East  Mission 
Fund  (1890),  which  helps  to  support  the  work  which  is 
superintended  by  the  Anglican  Bishop  in  Jerusalem.  The 
above  are  connected  with  the  Anglican  Church.  The 
British  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  among  the 
Jews  (1842)  is  undenominational.  There  are  also  four 
societies  supported  by  English,  Scotch,  and  Irish  Presby- 
terians, besides  a  number  of  very  small  societies.  Some  of 
the  most  fruitful  work  which  is  being  done  amongst  Jews 
in  England  is  that  carried  on  as  part  of  the  ordinary 
parochial  machinery  of  the  many  parishes  in  East  London 
which  contain  a  large  Jewish  population.  In  the  parish 
of  Spitalfields,  for  example,  which  contains  a  population  of 
19,000,  14,000  are  Jews.  In  this  parish  and  in  a 
number  of  other  parishes  which  contain  a  similar  pro- 
portion of  Jews,  the  "  East  London  Fund  for  the  Jews " 
supports  assistant  curates,  lay  workers,  both  men  and 
women,  and  nurses,  many  of  whom  are  converted  Jews. 
Although  the  number  of  conversions  is  small,  the  agents 
employed  in  these  parishes  can  point  to  a  change  of 
attitude  towards  Christianity  and  a  willingness  to  read  the 
New  Testament  and  to  attempts  to  practise  its  teaching 
which  afford  solid  grounds  for  encouragement.  In  the 
U.S.A.  and  Canada  there  are  44  societies,  but  these  only 
support  51  stations  between  them.  There  are  16  small 
continental  societies.  The  total  number  of  missionaries 
supported  by  95  societies  throughout  the  world  are  about 
500  men  and  350  women. 

^  A  Short  Handbook  of  Missions^  p.  155. 


MISSIONS   TO    THE   JEWS  475 

The  work  accomplished  cannot  be  gauged  by  statistics. 
Very  raany  Jews  on  the  continent  of  Europe  become  con- 
vinced of  the  truth  of  Christianity  after  studying  the  New 
Testament  or  as  the  result  of  personal  intercourse  with 
Christian  missionaries,  but  are  not  baptized  until  they  have 
left  their  neighbourhood  or  country.  Thus  in  six  years 
(1895-1901)  582  Jews  were  baptized  in  various  American 
churches  who  stated  that  they  had  been  brought  to  believe 
in  Christ  as  their  Saviour  as  the  result  of  their  intercourse 
with  Christian  missionaries  in  Europe. 

Missionary  work  amongst  the  Jews  is  in  urgent  need 
of  expansion.  In  Eussia  and  other  countries  there  are 
millions  of  Jews  for  whom  nothing  has  been  done  by 
Christian  missionaries. 

Amongst  the  number  of  Christian  Jews  whose  names 
have  become  more  or  less  famous,  we  may  notice  Neander, 
the  German  theologian  and  historian  (his  original  name 
was  Mende,  but  on  the  occasion  of  his  baptism  he  adopted 
the  name  Neander,  i.e.  new  man) ;  Dr.  Edersheim,  the 
author  of  the  Life  and  Times  of  the  Messiah ;  Bishop 
Schereschewsky,  Bishop  of  Shanghai,  a  great  missionary 
and  translator  of  the  Bible  into  Chinese ;  Hellmuth, 
Bishop  of  Huron  ;  Alexander,  Bishop  in  Jerusalem  (1841— 
45) ;  Felix  Mendelssohn ;  Sir  William  Herschel,  the 
astronomer ;  Sir  Francis  Palgrave,  a  poet ;  Benjamin 
Disraeli;  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan.^ 

How  sadly  the  Christian  Church  has  failed  to  recognize 
its  responsibility  towards  the  Jews  may  be  inferred  from 
the  fact  that  nearly  eighteen  hundred  years  were  allowed 
to  pass  before  the  New  Testament  was  translated  into  their 
language.  It  was  first  published  in  Hebrew  by  the 
London  Jews  Society  in  1817. 

Baptisms  diiring  the  Nineteenth  Century. — During  the 
nineteenth  century  the  number  of  recorded  baptisms  was 
as  follows :  by  the  Piussian  and  Oriental  Churches, 
74,500  ;  by  the  Ptoman  Church,  57,300  ;  by  the  Anglican 
Church,  28,830  ;  and  by  other  Christian  Churches,  72,740. 

^  See  Some  Great  Christian  Jews,  by  Dr.  Jas,  Littell.  Keene,  U.S.A. 


476  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

The  following  figures  are  quoted  in  Missions  to  Jews}  by 
W.  T.  Gidney.  They  relate  to  baptisms  in  connection 
with  Anglican  or  Protestant  Churches  :  Germany,  Jewish 
population,  560,000 — baptisms,  17,520.  Great  Britain, 
population  in  1800,  14,000;  in  1900,  250,000— bap- 
tisms, 28,830.  Holland,9Sfi00 — baptisms,  1800.  France, 
72,000  —  baptisms,  600.  Austria  and  Hungary, 
1,800,000  —  baptisms,  about  9000.  Russia,  baptisms, 
4136.  North  America:  the  Jewish  population  increased 
from  1000  in  1812  to  2,211,000  at  the  present  time 
— baptisms,  12,000. 

Converts  to  the  B.C.  Church. — In  Germany,  5000; 
Austria  and  Hungary,  36,200,  apart  from  children  of  mixed 
marriages;  Bussia,  12,000;  Italy,  300:  estimated  total 
number  of  converts,  57,300. 

Converts  to  the  Greek  Church — In  Bussia,  69,400  ; 
Austria  and  Hungary,  200;  Boumania,  1500;  Turkey, 
3300  :  total  number  of  converts  received  into  the  Greek 
Church,  74,500.  Of  this  total  a  very  large  proportion  of 
the  conversions  were  due  to  political  and  social  pressure 
rather  than  to  any  direct  religious  influences. 

The  number  of  conversions  which  have  taken  place  as  a 
result  of  Anglican  and  Protestant  missions  is  much  smaller, 
but  nearly  all  have  taken  place  as  a  result  of  deep  religious 
conviction  and  in  most  instances  the  converts  have  been 
exposed  to  serious  persecution  at  the  hands  of  their  fellow- 
countrymen.  In  connection  with  the  work  of  the  L.J.S. 
2150  baptisms  have  taken  place  in  London  between  1809 
and  1910.  Over  700  Jews  have  been  baptized  in  the  L.J.S. 
church  in  Jerusalem.  In  Persia  the  rate  of  conversion 
has  been  steadily  increasing :  1 3  baptisms  occurred  between 
1880  and  1889,  31  between  1890  and  1899,  55  between 
1900  and  1909.  In  Teheran  56  were  prepared  for 
baptism  in  1910,  of  whom  12  were  actually  baptized. 
1  Tenth  edition,  pp.  143-46. 


XXIII. 

MISSIONARY  SOCIETIES. 

In  the  sketch  that  has  been  given  of  the  missionary  work 
which  is  being  carried  on  in  different  countries,  attention 
has  been  drawn  to  the  work  and  organization  of  the  chief 
missionary  societies.  In  the  present  chapter  we  shall 
endeavour  to  give  a  list  of  the  largest  societies,  together 
with  a  few  notes  relating  to  their  origin  and  activities. 
For  a  further  account  of  the  work  of  any  particular  society, 
reference  must  be  made  to  the  index  under  the  headings 
relating  to  the  various  societies. 

Eeferences  to  societies  whose  work  is  confined  to  a 
particular  country,  e.g.  The  China  Inland  Mission  or  The 
Universities'  Mission  to  Central  Africa,  will  be  found  in 
the  chapters  dealing  with  the  countries  in  which  they  are 
at  work.  An  account  of  the  Moravian  Missionary  Society, 
the  New  England  Company,  and  the  early  Danish  and 
Dutch  Missions  is  given  in  the  chapter  on  the  "  Dawn  of 
Modern  Missions"  (p.  42  ff). 

The  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign 
Parts  was  founded  by  Eoyal  Charter  in  1701  with  the 
twofold  object  of  ministering  to  English  colonists  and  of 
converting  the  heathen  to  the  Christian  faith  (see  p.  58). 
The  following  are  some  of  its  chief  centres  of  work  amongst 
non-Christian  populations:  West  Indies  (1710),  West 
Africa  (1751),  British  Guiana  (1835),  South  Africa 
(1819),  India  (1820),  Borneo  (1848),  Burma  (1859), 
Madagascar  (1864),  Japan  (1873),  North  China  (1880). 

There  are  (1914)  1291  missionaries  on  the  Society's 
list,  of  whom   941  (750   Europeans  and   241   natives)  are 

477 


478  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

ordained.  Of  the  ordained  missionaries  about  300  are 
engaged  wholly  or  in  part  in  ministering  to  Europeans. 
Its  annual  income  is  about  £250,000. 

The  Church  Missionary  Society,  formerly  called  The 
Society  for  Missions  to  Africa  and  the  East,  was  formed 
on  April  12,  1799.  Its  first  missionaries  were  sent  to 
Eio  Pongas  in  West  Africa,  the  headquarters  of  this 
mission  being  subsequently  moved  to  Sierra  Leone.  The 
following  have  been  the  chief  centres  of  the  society's  work : 
New  Zealand  (1814),  India  (1814),  Ceylon  (1817),  Mid- 
China  (1844),  South  China  (1862),  Japan  (1869),  Persia 
(1875),  West  Africa  (1845),  Uganda  (1876),  Palestine 
(1851),  Egypt  (1882),  North-West  Canada  (1822). 

Its  medical  missions  are  more  extensive  than  those  of 
any  other  society.  Its  staff  includes  407  English  and 
454  other  ordained  missionaries.  Its  income  is  about 
£400,000.  It  has  65  men  and  21  women  medical 
missionaries. 

The  Baptist  Missionary  Society,  which  was  founded  on 
October  2,  1792,  was  the  outcome  of  appeals  made 
to  his  fellow  Baptists  by  William  Carey,  the  converted 
Northamptonshire  cobbler,  who  became  its  first  mission- 
ary. The  twelve  ministers  who  were  present  at  its  first 
meeting  subscribed  £13  and  drew  up  its  constitution.  In 
his  account  of  a  subsequent  meeting  called  to  consider  the 
question  of  starting  missionary  work  in  India,  Andrew 
Fuller,  its  secretary,  wrote :  "  We  saw  plainly  that  there 
was  a  gold  mine  in  India,  but  it  was  as  deep  as  the  centre 
of  the  earth.  Who  would  venture  to  explore  it  ?  *  I  will 
go  down,'  said  Carey, '  but  you  must  hold  the  ropes.'  "  The 
chief  centres  of  work  are  in  India  (1793),  Ceylon  (1812), 
China  (1877),  the  Belgian  Congo  (1877),  and  the  West 
Indies  (1813). 

Its  staff  includes  191  European  and  41  other 
ordained  missionaries.  Its  annual  income  is  about 
£90,000.  To  this  should  be  added  the  income  of  the 
Baptist  Zenana  Society  (£18,000). 

The  London  Missionary  Society  was  founded  in   1795, 


MISSIONARY    SOCIETIES  479 

Amongst  its  founders  and  early  supporters  were  many 
Anglican  and  Presbyterian  clergy,  but  it  is  now,  and  has 
for  a  long  time  been,  chiefly  supported  by  members  of 
Congregational  or  Independent  Churches.  One  of  its 
earliest  and  best  known  missionaries  was  the  Eev.  Eobert 
Morrison,  who  sailed  for  Canton  in  January  1807,  and  was 
the  inaugurator  of  modern  missions  in  China.  Its  first 
sphere  of  work  was  in  the  islands  of  the  South  Seas  (1797). 
Its  other  chief  centres  of  work  are  in  India  (1798),  South 
Africa  (1799),  Central  Africa  (1877),  Madagascar  (1818), 
and  JSTew  Guinea  (1871). 

Its  staff  includes  167  European  and  966  other 
ordained  missionaries.  Its  annual  income  (1914)  is 
£121,000. 

The  Wesleyan  Methodist  Missionary  Society  was  founded 
in  1813.  As  early  as  1760,  Gilbert,  a  slave-owner  in 
Antigua,  had  formed  a  Methodist  society  of  West  Indian 
slaves,  which  by  1786  had  increased  to  2000.  The  Eev. 
Thomas  Coke,  an  Anglican  clergyman  who  had  joined  the 
Methodists,  organized  and  carried  on  missionary  work  in 
the  West  Indies,  and  helped  to  send  missionaries  to  West 
Africa  for  thirty  years  before  the  formation  of  a  mission- 
ary society.  At  the  age  of  seventy-six  he  left  England 
with  7  missionaries — 3  for  Ceylon,  2  for  India,  1  for  Java, 
and  1  for  South  Africa.  He  died,  and  was  buried  at  sea 
on  June  1,  1814.  On  October  6,  1813,  the  missionary 
society  was  organized  at  Leeds.  In  1817  work  was  begun 
in  Madras,  in  1821  in  Mysore,  in  1860  in  Bengal,  in 
1822  in  New  Zealand,  and  in  the  Friendly  Islands.  In 
1836  was  begun  the  work  in  Fiji  which,  after  the  conver- 
sion of  King  Thakombau,  transformed  the  whole  character 
and  appearance  of  these  islands  (see  p.  452).  A  number 
of  missions  have  been  originated  by  this  society  in  different 
parts  of^  the  world  which  are  now  under  the  direction  of 
local  or  colonial  Methodist  Conferences.  In  its  missions  in 
India  and  other  countries  where  Europeans  reside,  the  atten- 
tion of  its  missionaries  is  divided  between  the  inhabitants 
of  the  country  and  the  European   population.      The  chief 


480  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

fields  in  which  the  society  labours  or  has  laboured  are  the 
West  Indies,  India  (1817),  Ceylon  (1813),  New  Zealand 
(1818),  South  Sea  Islands  (1822),  South  Africa  (1815), 
West  Africa  (1845),  China  (1852),  and  America.  The 
affiliated  Women's  Auxiliary  supports  women  missionaries 
in  many  of  these  fields. 

The  society  has  385  British  missionaries  (not  including 
wives)  and  94  unmarried  women  workers.  The  number  of 
"members"  is  129,000,  and  of  baptized  adults,  287,000. 
Its  staff  includes  319  European  and  336  other  ministers. 
Its  annual  income  is  about  £160,000,  to  which  should 
be  added  the  income  raised  by  the  Women's  Auxiliary, 
£22,000.  It  has  recently  raised  a  centenary  fund  of 
£250,000. 

Amongst  other  smaller  British  Societies  the  following 
should  be  mentioned.  (In  each  case  the  income  given  in 
brackets  is  for  1913)  : — 

Presbyterian  Church  of  England  (£4:3,026),  Presbyterian 
Church  in  Ireland  (£31,782),  Welsh  Calvinistic  Methodists 
(£18,283),  Primitive  Methodist  Missionary  Society  (£26, 610), 
United  Methodist  Church  Missionary  Society  (£13,519), 
Friends'  Foreign  Missionary  Association  (£33,000),  Sudan 
United  Mission  (£12,223),  and  the  North  Africa  Mission 
(£7068). 

The  total  raised  by  British  and  Irish  Societies  in  1913 
was  £2,046,126.  Of  this  amount,  £1,041,543  was 
contributed  by  the  Church  of  England,  £834,509  by 
the  Free  Churches,  £29,205  by  the  Church  of  Scotland, 
and  £140,869  by  the  supporters  of  interdenominational 
societies. 

In  considering  the  development  of  missionary  work  in 
recent  times,  special  reference  should  be  made  to  the  help 
which  has  been  afforded  to  nearly  all  missionary  societies 
by  the  Student  Volunteer  Missionary  Union.  The  British 
branch  of  this  Union  was  founded  in  1892,  and  afterwards 
became  a  department  of  the  Student  Christian  Movement, 
the  membership  of  which  consists  of  about  10,000  students. 
The   S.V.M.U.   is  not   a   missionary   society,  but  aims   at 


MISSIONARY   SOCIETIES  481 

creating  interest  in  missions  amongst  college  and  university 
students.  Its  members,  who  sign  a  declaration,  "  It  is  my 
purpose,  if  God  permit,  to  become  a  foreign  missionary,"  are 
encouraged  to  connect  themselves  with  some  existing 
society  and  to  go  abroad  as  its  representatives. 

It  is  hard  to  estimate  the  help  which  this  organization 
has  afforded  in  promoting  intelligent  interest  in  Christian 
missions  at  home  and  in  recruiting  for  the  work  abroad. 
The  number  of  members  of  the  British  section  of  the 
S.V.M.U.  who  have  already  (December  1914)  sailed  for 
work  abroad  is  2048. 

The  missionary  societies  in  connection  with  which  they 
are  working  are  as  follows:  Anglican,  487;  Wesleyan 
Methodist,  367;  London  Missionary  Society,  181;  United 
Free  Church  of  Scotland,  174;  Baptist,  148;  Irish 
Presbyterian,  5  3  ;  Church  of  Scotland,  5  5  ;  other  societies, 
583.  A  recent  publication  of  the  Student  Christian 
Movement  states : 

"  The  Movement  is  seeking  to  interest  in  foreign  missions 
those  who  intend  to  work  at  home,  as,  e.g.^  clergy  and 
ministers,  business  men,  doctors,  lawyers,  engineers,  school- 
masters, schoolmistresses,  etc.  This  it  does  by  having 
missionary  addresses  frequently  delivered  at  its  conferences 
and  meetings  of  the  Christian  Unions,  and  also  by  the 
promotion  of  missionary  study.  The  Movement  was  the 
pioneer  of  missionary  study  in  Great  Britain,  being  the  first 
organization  to  appoint  a  missionary  study  secretary  and  to 
publish  a  missionary  study  text-book.  Its  example  has  now 
been  followed  by  most  of  the  larger  missionary  societies. 

"  Last  year  there  were  over  356  missionary  study  circles 
in  the  colleges,  with  a  membership  of  about  2345  students." 

Work  of  a  similar  character  and  on  a  still  larger  scale 
is  being  carried  on  by  the  same  movement  in  America. 

Scottish  Missionary  Societies. 

We  have  already  referred  (p.  369)  to  the  Confession 
of  John  Knox,  in  which  he  declared  his  belief  that  the 
31 


482  HISTORY    OF   CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

gospel  should  be  preached  throughout  the  whole  world.  No 
missionary  enterprise,  however,  was  attempted  for  upwards 
of  a  century.  In  1647  the  Scottish  General  Assembly 
recorded  a  desire  for  "  a  more  firm  consociation  for  pro- 
pagating it  (the  Gospel)  to  those  who  are  without,  especially 
the  Jews,"  and  in  1699  it  counselled  the  ministers  who 
went  with  the  expedition  to  Darien  to  labour  among  the 
heathen.  In  1796  the  Scottish  (afterwards  called  the 
Edinburgh)  and  the  Glasgow  Societies  were  organized. 
The  former  society  sent  out  Peter  Greig,  a  gardener,  and  a 
member  of  the  Secession  Church  of  Donibristle,  who  was 
murdered  in  the  Fulah  country  in  West  Africa,  and  was 
perhaps  the  first  Protestant  missionary  martyr.  This  society 
started  missions  in  India  and  the  West  Indies.  The  Glasgow 
Society  started  a  mission  in  Kaffraria  in  1821. 

In  1825  the  Church  of  Scotland  Foreign  Missions 
Committee  was  formed,  which  in  1829  sent  Dr.  Duff  to 
India.  In  1835  this  Committee  took  over  the  mission 
in  India  which  had  been  organized  by  the  Edinburgh 
Society.  Its  chief  centres  of  work  are  India  (1829), 
Blantyre  (1874),  and  China  (1878).  Its  annual  income 
is  about  £30,000.  Its  staff  includes  32  foreign  and  15 
other  ordained  missionaries. 

The  Foreign  Missions  Committee  of  the  United  Free 
Church  dates  from  1843.  At  the  Disruption,  Dr.  Duff  and 
the  other  missionaries  in  India  became  members  of  the 
Free  Church.  The  Disruption  movement  served  to  increase 
interest  in  foreign  missions  to  such  an  extent,  that  in  the 
year  which  followed  it  the  contributions  of  the  members  of 
the  Free  Church  alone  exceeded  those  of  the  entire  Church 
before  the  Disruption  by  £3600.  The  chief  centres  of  work 
of  this  Church  at  the  present  time  are  India,  Manchuria 
(1873),  Calabar  (1846),  Kaffraria  (1821),  Livingstonia 
(1875),  New  Hebrides  (1876),  and  West  Indies.  The 
work  in  the  West  Indies  was  taken  over  from  the  Edinburgh 
Society  in  1847,  and  that  in  Kaffraria  from  the  Glasgow 
Society  in  the  same  year.  (For  an  account  of  the  Lovedale 
Institution  which  forms  part  of  this  mission,  see  p.  324.) 


MISSIONARY    SOCIETIES  483 

The  annual  income  of  this  society  is  about  £125,000. 
Its  staff  includes  117  foreign  and  68  other  ordained 
missionaries. 

The  Episcopal  Church  in  Scotland  supports  missions  in 
Kaffraria,  and  at  Chanda  in  the  diocese  of  ^N'agpur,  North 
Central  India.  The  work  in  Kaffraria  was  undertaken  at 
the  instigation  of  Bishop  Cotterill,  who  was  Bishop  of 
St.  John's,  Kaffraria,  and  afterwards  became  Bishop  of 
Edinburgh  in  1872. 

Other  Scottish  societies  include  the  Minburgh  Medical 
Missionary  Society  (1841),  which  supports  work  in  India 
and  Syria,  and  the  Mission  to  Lepers  in  India  and  the  East 
(1874),  which  endeavours  to  support  missions  in  all  lands 
where  leprosy  is  found. 

American  Missionary  Societies. 

Missions  supported  in  America  may  be  said  to  date 
back  to  1806,  when  three  students— Mills,  Hall,  and 
Eichards— held  the  "Haystack  prayer-meeting,"  and  re- 
solved to  form  a  society  the  object  of  which  should  be  "  to 
effect  a  mission  to  the  heathen  in  the  person  of  its 
members."!  Their  desire  to  be  sent  out  as  missionaries 
led  to  the  formation  of  the  American  Board  of  Com- 
missioners for  Foreign  Missions  in  1810,  and,  later  on,  to 
the  American  Baptist  Missionary  Union  in  1814. 

The  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign 
Missions  (A.B.C.F.M.)  was  organized  in  1810  by  the 
General  Association  of  Congregational  Churches  of 
Massachusetts.  In  the  following  year  Judson  was  sent  to 
England  to  confer  with  the  L.M.S.  with  regard  to  mutual 
co-operation,  but  this  was  not  found  to  be  feasible.  In 
1812  its  first  five  missionaries,  of  whom  Judson  was  one, 
sailed  for  Calcutta.  In  1812  the  Presbyterians  decided  to 
support  the  A.B.C.F.M.,  and  in  1826  they  entrusted  to  the 
Board  their  work  amongst  American  Indians.  In  1837, 
however,   they  formed   a   separate   organization   for   work 

^  See  p.  377. 


484  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

amongst  the  Indians,  but  in  1870  a  Board  of  Foreign 
Missions  of  the  re-united  Presbyterian  Churches  was  formed, 
and  the  Board  since  then  has  represented  Congregationalists 
alone. 

Its  chief  centres  of  work  are:  The  Marathi  Mission 
(1812),  the  Mission  to  Tamils  in  Ceylon  (1813),  and 
Madura  (1834),  Micronesia  (1852),  Asiatic  Turkey  (1831), 
China  (1847),  Zululand  (1835),  Portuguese  West  Africa 
(1880),  Japan  (1869).  It  also  supports  a  number  of 
missionaries  who  work  amongst  those  who  are  nominally 
Christians  in  South  America,  Mexico,  Spain,  and  Austria. 

Its  staff  of  ordained  missionaries  includes  165 
Americans  and  322  others.  Its  annual  income  is  about 
£200,000. 

The  American  Baptist  Missionary  Union  dates  from 
May  18,  1814,  and  was  founded  in  order  to  support 
Judson,  who  had  sailed  for  India  as  a  Congregationalist, 
but  prior  to  starting  work  in  Burma  had  become  a  Baptist. 
It  received  the  general  support  of  Baptists  in  America 
till  1845,  when,  in  consequence  of  the  refusal  of  the 
Northern  Baptists  to  allow  the  appointment  of  slave- 
owning  missionaries,  the  Southern  Baptist  Convention 
was  formed. 

Its  chief  centres  of  work  are  Burma  (1813),  Assam 
(1836),  the  Telugu  country  (1836),  China  (1842),  Japan 
(I860),  Congo  (1878). 

Its  annual  income  is  about  £220,000,  and  its  staff  of 
ordained  missionaries  inclades  211  American  missionaries. 
The  society  also  carries  on  work  amongst  Christians  in 
Europe  and  in  the  Philippine  Islands. 

The  Southern  Baptist  Convention  supports  work  in 
China,  Africa,  and  Japan.  Its  income  is  about  £117,000, 
and  its  staff  of  ordained  missionaries  includes  109  Americans 
and  112  others. 

The  missionary  organization  of  the  Methodist  Bpiscopial 
Church  in  the  United  States  dates  from  1819,  but  its  foreign 
work  was  only  started  in  1833.  In  all  countries  in  which 
there   is  a   Christian   population  its   work    is    carried   on 


MISSIONARY   SOCIETIES  485 

simultaneously  amongst  the  white  and  coloured  population, 
and  in  its  returns  the  two  kinds  of  work  are  not  dis- 
tinguished. Its  principal  work  amongst  non-Christians  is 
in  Liberia  (1833),  Angola  and  the  Congo  district  (1885), 
East  Central  Africa  (1901),  China  (1847),  India  (1856), 
Japan  (1873),  Corea  (1884). 

A  women's  auxiliary  was  formed  as  early  as  1819,  but 
did  not  take  any  active  part  in  the  work  of  the  society  till 
1869.  Its  annual  income  is  about  £540,000,  but  this 
includes  a  large  number  of  contributions  towards  the 
support  of  work  amongst  European  Christians. 

A  Board  of  Missions  connected  with  the  Methodist 
Episco'pal  Church  (South)  was  organized  in  1846.  It  started 
work  in  China  in  1848.  One  of  its  missionaries  has  been 
Dr.  A.  P.  Parker,  afterwards  President  pf  the  Anglo- 
Chinese  College  in  Shanghai.  It  began  work  in  Japan  in 
1886  and  in  Corea  in  1895.  Its  annual  income  is  about 
£150,000. 

The  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the  U.S.A.  in  1817 
offered,  through  Bishop  Griswold,  to  co-operate  with  the 
C.M.S.  of  England  in  sending  out  missionaries  to  the 
foreign  field,  but  was  urged  by  this  society  to  organize 
independent  work.  In  1820  the  Domestic  and  Foreign 
Missionary  Society  was  formed,  and  in  1835  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Church  took  over  the  work  and  became  its 
own  missionary  society.  In  1830  work  was  started  in 
Liberia,  and  in  1850  a  bishop  of  Cape  Palmas  was 
appointed.  Its  work  was  extended  to  Batavia  in  1835, 
and  to  China  in  1837,  to  Japan  in  1859,  and  to  the 
Philippines  in  1901. 

Its  annual  expenditure  on  work  outside  the  United 
States  is  about  £130,000.  It  helps  to  support  11  bishops 
(Cape  Palmas,  Shanghai,  Hankow,  Anking,  Tokyo,  Kyoto, 
Brazil,  Cuba,  Mexico,  Philippine  Islands,  and  Porto 
Eico). 

Its  missionary  staff  includes  60  American  and  114 
other  clergy.  In  its  mission  hospitals  250,000  cases  were 
treated  in  1913. 


486  HISTORY    OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

The  Presbyterian  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  (North)  was 
constituted  in  1837,  but  missionary  work  had  been  sup- 
ported by  Presbyterians  in  America  at  a  much  earlier  date. 
Thus  in  1741  the  Eev.  Azariah  Horton  was  appointed  by 
the  Presbytery  of  New  York  to  labour  among  Indians  in 
Long  Island,  and  in  1744  David  Brainerd  was  ordained 
by  the  same  Presbytery  (see  p.  370).  Several  other  efforts 
were  also  made  to  organize  work  amongst  the  Indians.  In 
1818  the  United  Foreign  Missionary  Society  was  formed, 
the  work  of  which  was  transferred  to  the  A.B.C.F.M.  in 
1826.  When  the  Board  was  formed  in  1837  it  received 
support  from  the  Presbyterians  who  belonged  to  the  "  old 
school,"  whilst  the  "  new  school "  continued  to  support  the 
A.B.C.F.M.  till  1870,  when  the  Board  received  the  united 
support  of  both  sections.  The  Board  is  a  permanent  com- 
mittee of  the  General  Assembly,  which  supervises  and 
controls  the  missions.  It  began  its  work  in  India,  where 
it  took  over  a  mission  at  Ludhiana  which  had  been  started 
in  1833.  Its  chief  centres  of  work  at  the  present  time 
are  in  the  Punjab  (1846),  the  United  Provinces  (1836), 
Western  India  (1870),  Central  China  (1844),  Canton 
(1845),  Peking  (1863),  Shantung  (1861),  Siam  (1847), 
Japan  (1859),  West  Africa  (1850),  Persia  (1870),  and 
Corea  (1884). 

Its  annual  income  is  about  £470,000,  and  its  staff 
of  ordained  missionaries  includes  365  foreign  and  277 
others.  These  figures  include  the  support  of  work  carried 
on  amongst  Christians  in  South  America,  Syria,  etc. 

The  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  Southern  States  formed 
a  separate  missionary  organization  on  the  outbreak  of  the 
war  (1861).  Its  chief  centres  of  work  are  in  China  (1867), 
Japan  (1885),  Congo  (1890),  and  Corea  (1892).  Its 
annual  income  is  about  £100,000,  and  its  staff  of 
ordained  missionaries  includes  100  Americans  and  35 
others. 

Amongst  other  smaller  American  societies  should  be 
mentioned  the  Dutch  Reformed  Chiirch  (1832),  which 
supports   work   in   China,  Japan,  India,  and   Arabia ;    the 


MISSIONARY    SOCIETIES  487 

American  Friends*  Board  of  Foreign  Missions  (1871),  which 
supports  work  in  Japan  and  China ;  the  General  Missionary 
Board  of  the  Church  of  the  Brethren  (1884),  which  supports 
work  in  China  and  India ;  the  United  Brethren  in  Christ 
(1853),  which  supports  work  in  West  Africa,  China,  and 
Japan;  the  Swedish  Missionary  Covenant  (1885),  which 
supports  work  in  China  and  Alaska ;  and  the  Christian 
and  Missionary  Alliance,  which  supports  work  in  West 
Africa,  India,  China,  and  Japan. 

Missionary  Societies  on  the  Continent  of  Europe. 

The  Berlin  Missionary  Society,  which  was  founded  in 
1824,  was  the  outcome  of  a  missionary  training  school 
founded  by  Janicke  in  1800.  The  appeal  for  funds 
wherewith  to  found  the  society  was  signed  by  Neander, 
Tholuck,  and  other  well-known  writers.  It  began  by 
supporting  the  Moravian  and  Basel  Missions,  but  in  1834 
sent  out  missionaries  on  its  own  account.  This  society 
has  kept  constantly  in  view  the  design  of  making  its 
missions  self-supporting  by  the  opening  of  stores,  mills, 
and  other  enterprises  in  connection  with  its  mission 
stations.  Its  chief  centres  of  work  are  South  Africa  (1834), 
German  East  Africa  (1891),  and  China  (1846). 

The  Leipzig  Evangelical  Lutheran  Mission  Society  was 
founded  in  Dresden  in  1836,  but  its  centre  of  organization 
was  removed  to  Leipzig  in  1846.  Its  chief  centres  of 
work  are  in  India  (1840)  and  East  Africa  (1902). 

The  Rhenish  Missionary  Society  was  the  outcome  of  a 
missionary  union  organized  by  twelve  laymen  in  Elberfeld 
in  1799.  It  was  formed  in  1828  at  Barmen.  Its  chief 
centres  of  work  are  South  Africa  (1829),  Dutch  East 
Indies  (1842),  China  (1846),  and  German  New  Guinea 
(1887). 

The  Herniannshurg  Missionary  Society  was  founded  by 
Louis  Harms  as  a  private  society  in  1849,  but  after  his 
death  in  1865  it  came  under  the  direction  of  the  Lutheran 
"  Free   Church   of   Hanover."     In   the   early  days   of  this 


488  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

mission  efforts  were  made  to  establish  self-supporting  farms 
in  connection  with  the  mission  stations,  but  this  policy  has 
been  gradually  abandoned.  Its  chief  centres  of  work  are 
in  South  Africa  (1857)  and  the  Telugu  country  in  India 
(1866). 

The  Basel  Evangelical  Missionary  Society.  In  1730 
the  German  Christian  Society  was  founded  at  Basel  in 
order  "  to  collect  and  impart  information  concerning  the 
kingdom  of  God."  Later  on  it  corresponded  with  the 
L.M.S.  In  1815  members  of  this  society  and  others 
founded  a  missionary  training  home  in  Basel  with  the  in- 
tention of  supplying  missionaries  to  some  of  the  English 
missionary  societies.  In  1821  it  sent  out  its  first  mis- 
sionaries. The  society  is  undenominational  and  has  re- 
lations with  nearly  all  the  Protestant  Churches  of  Central 
Europe.  Its  chief  centres  of  work  are  West  Africa  (1827), 
Western  India  (1834),  and  China  (1846). 

The  Paris  Evangelical  Mission  Society  was  founded  in 
November  1822.  After  the  Eevolution  in  1848  the 
support  which  it  received  became  so  small  that  it  had  for 
a  time  to  close  its  missionary  training  institution,  but  soon 
afterwards  its  work  greatly  expanded.  Its  chief  centres  of 
work  are  Basutoland  (1833),  Senegal  (1862),  the  Zambesi 
(1877),  French  Congo  (1887),  Tahiti  and  French  Poly- 
nesia (1845),  and  Madagascar  (1902). 

Some  particulars  in  regard  to  the  above  missions  and 
in  regard  to  the  chief  missionary  societies  supported  in  the 
Netherlands,  Scandinavia,  and  Finland  are  given  in  the 
table  on  the  opposite  page: — 


MISSIONARY    SOCIETIES 


489 


1 

Ordained 

'3 

'3 

tc 

Home 
Income. 

Missionaries. 

if 

o  « 

Field  of  Labour. 

O 

Foreign. 

Native. 

O 

Germany — 

Berlin 

1824 

£76,000 

118 

31 

39,000 

China,     East     and 
South  Africa 

Rhenish       , 

1828 

62,000 

171 

40 

102,000 

South  Africa,  Dutch 
East  Indies,  China 

Gossner 

1836 

19,000 

47 

43 

34,000 

India 

Leipsic 

1836 

45,000 

56 

23 

11,000 

India,  East  Africa 

Hermannsburg    . 

1849 

26,000 

61 

4 

34,000 

South  Africa,  India, 
Persia 

France- 

Paris  Society 

1822 

40,000 

58 

106 

10,000 

Africa,     Melanesia, 
Polynesia 

Switzerland — 

Basel  Society 

1815 

96,000 

214 

57 

41,000 

India,  China,  West 
Africa 

Mission  Romande 

1875 

13,000 

18 

2,500 

South  Africa,  East 
Africa 

Netherlands— 

Neth.  Society 

1797 

16,000 

19 

... 

17,000 

Dutch  East  Indies 

Utrecht  Union    . 

1859 

10,000 

18 

... 

Dutch  East  Indies, 
Dutch  N.  Guinea 

Scandinavia- 

Danish  Society    . 

1821 

24,000 

32 

7 

1,000 

India,  China 

Norwegian     Mis- 

1842 

19,000 

68 

101 

30,000 

South  Africa,  Mada- 

sionary Society 

gascar,  China 

Swedish  Mission- 

1878 

24,000 

56 

... 

3,000 

Congo,  China,  Chin- 

ary Union 

ese  Turkestan 

Church  of  Sweden 

1874 

17,000 

24 

5 

3,000 

South  Africa,  India, 

Mission 

Ceylon 

Swedish  Evangeli- 

1856 

10,000 

29 

5 

1,700 

East  Africa,  India 

cal       National 
Society 
Finnish    Mission- 

1859 

15,000 

27 

1,800 

German  South-West 

ary  Society 

Africa,  China 

Total  for  all  Continental  \ 
Protestant  Societies  i  j 

£900,000 

1508 

488 

371.000 

1  1914  Reports. 


Roman  Catholic  Missionary  Societies  and  Associations. 

A  considerable  extension  of  the  missions  connected 
with  the  E.G.  Church  dates  from  the  early  years  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  the  missionary  activities  of  the  Church 
having  been  practically  dormant  during  a  great  part  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  The  revival  of  interest  in  missions 
was  greatly  assisted  by  the  formation  of  the  Lyons 
Missionary  Society.     In  1822  "a  few  humble  and  obscure 


490  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

Catholics "  (as  they  described  themselves)  founded  at 
Lyons  an  Institution  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Faith, 
their  object  being  not  to  send  out  missionaries  but  to 
collect  money  to  hand  to  various  religious  Orders  and 
societies.  The  earliest  members  of  this  society  were  some 
of  the  women  engaged  in  the  silk  factories  at  Lyons.  At 
its  first  meeting  twelve  persons  were  present,  when  a 
priest  proposed  a  resolution  to  found  an  association  to  help 
Roman  Catholic  missions  all  over  the  world.  In  the 
recent  report  of  the  society  it  is  stated :  "  that  the  root- 
idea  of  the  organization  is  due  to  Pauline  Marie  Jaricot, 
who  formed  the  girls  working  in  the  silk  factories  of  that 
city  into  groups  of  apostolic  workers  for  the  missionary 
cause.  Each  group  of  ten  was  headed  by  a  promoter  who 
collected  the  halfpenny  subscribed  by  each  associate  per 
week  and  in  return  circulated  the  news  that  came  from 
the  missionaries  in  response  to  their  zeal  and  generosity. 

The  society  was  founded  by  laity,  and  the  administration 
of  its  funds  is  almost  entirely  in  their  hands.  The  Pope 
blessed  the  society  in  1823,  and  by  1843  its  income  had 
reached  £141,000.  It  then  claimed  to  be  assisting  130 
bishops  and  4000  priests.  The  receipts  of  the  society  in 
1914  were  £324,000.  Of  the  sum  received  £30,000  was 
contributed  towards  the  support  of  Jesuit  missions. 

As  the  other  societies  and  Orders  which  support  foreign 
missions  do  not  publish  statements  of  accounts,  it  is 
difficult  to  form  any  estimate  of  the  whole  amount  con- 
tributed annually  by  Koman  Catholics  towards  the  support 
of  missionary  work. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  number 
of  the  Eoman  Catholic  missionaries  hardly  amounted  to 
1000.  To-day  there  are  in  non-Christian  countries  6000 
European  priests,  2400  teaching  brothers,  and  about 
8500  sisters,  apart  from  native  workers.^  The  Roman 
Catholic  missions  are  carried  on  partly  by  missionary 
societies   and  partly  by  religious  Orders,  and  have  been, 

1  From  these  figures  at  least  10  per  cent,  ought  apparently  to  be  deducted 
(see  p.  492). 


MISSIONARY   SOCIETIES  491 

to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  under  the  supervision  of  the 
Congregation  de  propaganda  Fide  at  Eome  since  its  founda- 
tion in  1622.  The  congregation  of  Lazarists  was  founded 
by  St.  Vincent  de  Paul  in  1632  and  the  Soci^te  des 
Missions  ^fitrangeres  in  1663.  This  latter,  which  is  one 
of  the  most  important  of  the  E.G.  missionary  societies, 
supports  work  in  Japan,  Corea,  Indo-China,  Burma,  and 
South  India.  The  headquarters  of  both  are  at  Paris. 
Other  smaller  societies  have  their  headquarters  in  Italy, 
Belgium,  England,  and  Ireland.  Of  the  religious  Orders 
the  Anglican  Benedictines  work  in  several  of  the  English 
colonies  or  dominions  ;  the  Capuchins  in  the  Levant, 
Western  Asia,  North  Africa,  and  South  America ;  the 
Carmelites  in  India  ;  the  Dominicans  in  Turkey  and  Indo- 
China  ;  the  Lazarists  in  China,  the  Levant,  Persia, 
Madagascar,  and  South  America ;  the  Franciscans  in 
China,  in  the  Philippines,  the  Pacific  Islands,  Egypt,  and 
North  Africa  ;  and  the  Jesuits  in  all  parts  of  the  mission 
field.  An  English  organization  entitled  St.  Joseph's 
Foreign  Missionary  Society,  established  in  1870,  works  in 
Uganda,  India,  and  Borneo. 

The  Jesuit  Order  numbers  altogether  (1914)  16,735, 
of  whom  3619  are  serving  in  foreign  missions.  Of  the 
720  members  in  the  "  English  Provinces  "110  are  serv- 
ing in  British  Guiana  and  Zambesiland. 

Among  other  smaller  societies  or  associations  should  be 
mentioned  the  Congregation  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  the 
Immaculate  Heart  of  Mary,  the  Oblates  of  Mary  Immacu- 
late, the  Society  of  Mary,  the  Oratorians  and  Oblates  of 
St.  Francis  de  Sales,  the  Ptedemptionists,  the  Paulists,  and 
the  Congregation  of  the  Sacred  Hearts  of  Jesus  and  Mary. 

Roman  Catholic  Missionary  Statistics. 

The  following  statistics  relating  to  Eoman  Catholic 
missions  in  non-Christian  countries  have  been  condensed 
from  the  Atlas  Rierarchichus  issued  in  1913 : — 


492 


HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 


Countries. 

Missionary  Force. 

Native  Membership. 

European 
Priests. 

Native 
Priests. 

European 

Lay 
Brothers. 

European 
Sisters. 

Baytt^d. 

Catechumens. 

Japan      ,        ,        .        . 
Corea      .... 
Chinese  Empire 
Further  India . 
East  India  Islands  . 
Oceania  .... 
India  and  Ceylon  2  . 
North  Africa  (East)  4       . 
North  Africa  (West) 
South  Africa   . 
Central  Africa 
African  Islands 
United  States  (Indians)  . 

162 

40 
1,305 
517 
101 
427 
1,268 
266 
497 
387 
810 
188 
163 

33 

15 

721 

689 

2 

8 

1,230 

80 

6 

4 

3 

2 

99 

7 
247 
1301 

41 
227 
4001 
3001 
141 
360 
311 
1281 

551 

100 
10 

1,429 
120 
2001 
418 

2,000 1 
900 
339 

1,672 
466 
4671 
3911 

66,134 

78,850 

1,406,659 

986,597 

37,707 

131,436 

2,146,8543 

30,000 
120,000 

50,0001 
332,676 
223,504 

64,741 

16,4521 
8,2201 
613,402 
22.5761 
'816 
n,598 
55,4431 
1,600 
43,245 
5,866 
352,763 
253,015 

Totals    . 

6,131 

2,792 

2,446 

8,512 

5,675,158 

1,384,995 

^  These  figures  are  not  given  in  the  Atlas  Hierarchichus,  but  are  estimates 
taken  from  other  sources. 

^  The  Christians  in  Ceylon  connected  with  Roman  Catholic  missions 
number  about  350,000. 

^  According  to  Indian  Census  Returns. 

*  Including  work  amongst  Europeans  in  Egypt  and  Tripoli. 

The  figures  given  above  include  many  priests  and  other 
workers  who  are  engaged  in  ministering  to  Europeans  or 
Eurasians  in  India,  South  and  North  Africa,  and  Oceania. 
These  workers  constitute  from  10  to  15  per  cent,  of  the 
totals  given.  In  the  E.G.  returns  no  distinction  is  made 
between  these  workers  and  those  who  are  working  amongst 
non- Christians. 

The  amount  contributed  towards  the  support  of 
E.G.  missions  in  the  U.S.A.  has  increased  during  the  last 
ten  years  from  £9000  to  £88,000.  During  the  same 
period  the  amount  contributed  in  France  has  fallen  from 
£163,000  to  £118,000. 


XXIV. 

THE  OUTLOOK. 

In  the  preceding  pages  we  have  tried  to  avoid  giving  any 
missionary  statistics  which  were  not  necessary  in  order  to 
elucidate  the  progress  of  Christian  missions.  Students  of 
missions  have  learnt  by  experience  how  easily  statistics 
can  mislead,  and  how  poor  a  test  they  afford  of  the  depth 
or  stability  of  the  work  in  any  given  place.  Whilst,  how- 
ever, the  student  has  need  to  sift  the  missionary  statistics 
which  are  available  with  the  utmost  care,  he  cannot  afford 
to  neglect  them  altogether,  as  in  many  cases  they  afford 
the  only  means  of  estimating  the  progress  of  missions  over 
a  wide  area  and  within  any  given  period.  In  order  that 
we  may  form  some  estimate  of  the  missionary  prospect 
throughout  the  world  at  the  present  moment,  it  will  be 
well  to  take  note  of  the  latest  available  statistics  which 
relate  to  the  mission  field  as  a  whole.  Surveying  the 
whole  field  of  Anglican  and  Protestant  missions,  we  note 
that  the  total  sum  raised  by  missionary  societies  in 
1914  was  about  £7,000,000.  Of  this  amount,  roughly 
speaking,  £3,200,000  was  contributed  in  the  United 
States,  £2,400,000  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  £900,000 
on  the  continent  of  Europe,  £250,000  in  Canada,  £100,000 
in  Australia,  and  the  rest  in  Africa  and  Asia.  To  this 
total  should  be  added  about  £1,500,000  raised  in  the 
mission  field  for  the  support  of  Christian  Churches  or  for 
the  evangelization  of  non-Christians.  The  most  encourag- 
ing fact  revealed  by  the  statistics  is  the  rapid  expansion 
of  Christian  missionary  organizations.  During  the  twelve 
years  between  1901  and  1913  the  contributions  more 
than    doubled.     The  increase  in    the   American  contribu- 

493 


494  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

tions  was  greater  than  it  has  been  in  England,  but  in  both 
countries  it  has  been  remarkable.  Moreover,  the  increase 
during  the  five  years  1909—14  has  been  much  more  rapid 
than  during  the  earlier  years  of  this  period.  During  these 
five  years  the  total  increase  was  roughly  from  £5,100,000 
to  £7,000,000,  i.e.  37*2  per  cent.,  or  7*4  per  cent,  per 
annum. 

If  we  extend  our  survey  of  Protestant  and  Anglican 
missions  and  take  in  the  whole  of  the  century  ending  in 
1910,  we  should  find  that  the  contributions  towards  the 
support  of  foreign  missions  increased  during  this  period 
three-hundredfold. 

During  the  period  1900-14  the  number  of  European 
and  American  missionaries  connected  with  the  various 
societies  increased  from  16,218  to  24,871,  and  the 
number  of  local  missionaries  and  mission  helpers  from 
62,366  to  129,527.  Although  the  contributions  raised 
in  America  exceed  those  raised  in  Great  Britain  by  nearly 
50  per  cent.,  the  number  of  European  missionaries 
supported  by  British  societies  is  greater  than  the  number 
of  American  (U.S.A.)  missionaries,  i.e.  10,871  as  compared 
with  9000,  the  expenditure  in  connection  with  each 
missionary  being  considerably  greater  in  America  than  it 
is  in  England.  The  following  statistics  relating  to  Foreign 
Missions  supported  in  the  United  States  and  Canada  were 
issued  in  January  1915  by  the  Committee  on  Home  Base 
representing  the  Foreign  Missions  Conference  of  North 
America.  The  total  income  of  American  (U.S.A.)  Foreign 
Mission  Boards  during  1914  was  $15,449,990,  and  of 
Canadian  missionary  organizations  $1,250,075.  To  these 
totals  should  be  added  $468,545  contributed  for  educa- 
tional and  medical  work  in  America,  and  $4,243,967 
contributed  in  the  foreign  mission  field.  In  connection 
with  the  missions  supported  in  the  United  States  and 
Canada,  159,286  persons  were  baptized  during  1914  as 
compared  with  121,811  during  1913;  there  are  606 
colleges,  theological  seminaries,  and  training  schools,  and 
12,969  other  schools,  with  a  total  attendance  of  547,730. 


THE   OUTLOOK  495 

The  foregoing  statistics  make  it  clear  that,  whatever 
criticism  may  be  passed  upon  the  work  which  is  now 
being  done  by  Christian  missionaries,  it  can  no  longer  be 
said  that  it  is  being  carried  on  on  such  a  small  scale  that 
the  student  of  modern  history  can  afford  to  pass  it  by. 
To  the  Christian  who  contemplates  his  obligations  in  the 
spirit  of  Christ's  teaching,  the  work  which  is  being  done 
will  appear  pitifully  minute,  but  if  the  influence  which  it 
is  exerting  be  compared  with  the  other  influences  which 
are  shaping  the  destinies  of  nations,  it  will  be  seen  to  be 
both  large  and  intense. 

If  we  include  the  missionaries  of  the  Eoman  and  Greek 
communions,  the  number  of  European  and  American 
workers  in  the  mission  field  to-day  exceeds  50,000 ; 
whilst  the  number  of  communicants,  or  full  members  of 
the  Christian  Church,  exceeds  7,000,000.  Each  year, 
moreover,  sees  the  addition  by  baptism  of  more  than  half 
a  million  members,  whilst  the  number  of  Christian  ad- 
herents in  the  non-Christian  countries  which  constitute 
the  mission  field  is  not  far  short  of  10,000,000.  We 
should  be  the  first  to  deprecate  the  thought  that  the 
work  of  Christian  missions  can  be  estimated  by  figures, 
but  in  view  of  the  comparative  neglect  with  which  such 
work  has  often  been  treated,  it  is  helpful  to  recall  the  fact 
that  if  they  are  gauged  by  the  standards  of  business  life 
they  cannot  justly  be  described  as  devoid  of  visible  results. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  name  any  subject  other 
than  that  of  foreign  missions  which  so  few  persons  have 
carefully  studied,  but  on  which,  nevertheless,  so  many  are 
prepared  to  pass  judgment.  Careful  study  may  be  defined 
as  study  continued  for  a  space  of  at  least  ten  years.  If 
it  be  objected  that  this  is  a  long  period  to  expect  a  student 
of  foreign  missions  to  devote  to  his  subject  before  we  are 
prepared  to  listen  with  respect  to  the  conclusions  which 
he  has  to  report,  we  have  only  to  consider  the  length  of 
time  which  is  regarded  as  necessary  to  qualify  one  who 
aspires  to  be  an  expert  in  any  other  branch  of  knowledge 
in   order    to   establish    the  justice    of    our  demand.     We 


496  HISTORY   OF   CHRISTIAN   MISSIONS 

should  listen  with  undisguised  impatience  to  anyone  who 
presumed  to  criticize  and  reject  the  conclusions  of  his 
predecessors  if  the  subject  with  which  he  was  dealing 
were  the  cure  of  disease,  the  motions  of  the  stars,  or  the 
results  of  historical  investigation,  or  metaphysical  specula- 
tion, if  he  had  spent  any  shorter  period  in  preparing 
himself  for  his  task ;  but  the  globe-trotter,  who  has 
spent  a  few  days  or  weeks  in  examining  the  methods  and 
results  of  Christian  missions,  is  usually  sure  of  a  sympa- 
thetic audience  when,  on  returning  from  his  travels,  he 
communicates  his  discoveries  to  the  world.  With  what  a 
different  reception  would  he  meet  if,  after  spending  the  same 
number  of  days  in  examining  hospitals,  in  visiting  observ- 
atories, in  skimming  historical  works,  or  in  studying 
metaphysics,  he  were  to  presume  to  speak  with  authority 
on  the  results  of  his  investigations ! 

The  majority  of  the  missionaries  who  are  in  the  field 
to-day  would  welcome  an  examination  of  their  work  at 
the  hands  of  intelligent  investigators  who  possessed  some 
knowledge  of  the  history  of  missions,  but,  conscious  of 
the  fact  that  their  methods  are  the  outcome  of  eighteen 
centuries  of  experience  and  that  the  task  on  which  they 
are  engaged,  whether  viewed  from  a  spiritual,  a  moral, 
or  an  educational  standpoint,  is  the  greatest  which  men 
have  ever  essayed  to  undertake,  they  find  it  hard  to  be 
patient  when  the  superficial  critic  presumes  to  pass  judg- 
ment upon  their  methods  or  their  results. 

What  may  be  termed  the  sociological  results  which 
have  been  achieved  by  missionaries  in  non-Christian  lands 
have  been  well  summarized  by  Dr.  Capen,  a  well-known 
student  of  missions  in  America.     He  writes : 

"Missionaries  have  done  much  to  remove  the  evil  of 
ignorance.  They  have  introduced  into  the  East  modern 
medicine,  and  are  treating  yearly  millions  of  patients  who 
would  otherwise  be  beyond  the  possibility  of  relief.  Where 
the  need  is  the  greatest,  they  have  undertaken  to  increase 
the  industrial  efficiency  of  the  Christian  community,  and 
to   prepare  Christiarw   leaders   for   the   new   industry.     In 


THE   OUTLOOK  497 

various  ways  they  have  raised  the  standard  of  living  among 
the  native  Christians  and  those  who  are  under  Christian 
influence.  Under  the  impulse  of  Christianity,  woman  has 
been  coming  to  her  own.  Education  has  provided  for  her, 
and  in  Christian  homes  the  wife  is  becoming  the  companion 
and  helpmeet  of  her  husband,  and  the  intelligent  guide  and 
teacher  of  her  children.  Christianity  has  emphasized  the 
infinite  worth  of  the  individual  before  God,  and  the  Christian 
has  come  to  have  a  new  sense  of  self-respect,  and  he  stands 
before  the  community  as  a  free  man  in  Christ.  The 
missionary  has  ever  preached  and  exemplified  new  standards 
of  justice,  honour,  truthfulness,  and  purity,  and  thus  person- 
ally, and  through  those  whom  he  has  influenced  and  trained, 
he  has  helped  to  solve  both  the  political  and  the  ethical 
problems  of  the  people  among  whom  he  has  lived."  ^ 

In  the  course  of  this  volume  we  have  referred  to 
and  endeavoured  to  illustrate  many  different  methods  of 
missionary  enterprise,  but  we  can  never  allow  ourselves 
to  forget  that  the  supremely  important  method  of  missionary 
work  is  the  method  of  the  Incarnation.  As  Jesus  Christ 
revealed  God  by  being  what  He  was,  so  in  a  true  sense 
the  aim  of  the  Christian  missionary  must  be  to  reveal 
God  made  manifest  in  Christ  by  living  over  again  the 
Christ-life.  The  secret  of  St.  Paul's  missionary  success 
was  contained  in  the  statement,  "  To  me  to  live  is  Christ." 

For  the  successful  prosecution  of  the  missionary  campaign 
character  is  of  greater  importance  than  method.  Many 
a  missionary  whose  intellectual  and  other  qualifications 
have  been  small,  has  exerted  what  to  onlookers  has  appeared 
to  be  a  miraculous  influence  by  the  life  which  he  has  lived 
in  a  non-Christian  land.  Many  a  mission  which  has 
adopted  physical  methods  of  propagating  Christianity  which 
appear  to  be  wholly  inconsistent  with  the  Spirit  of  Christ, 
has  achieved  spiritual  results  which  other  missions  that 
have  been  conducted  upon  the  most  approved  lines  have 
failed  to  accomplish.  In  both  instances  the  influence 
exerted  by  the  personal  character  of  the  individual 
missionary  has  been  so  strong   that   the   wisdom   or   un- 

*  Sociological  Progress  in  Mission  Lands,  by  E.  W.  Capen,  p.  397  f. 
32 


498  HISTORY   OF    CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

wisdom  of  the  methods  which  he  has  adopted  has  become 
a  matter  of  secondary  importance.  It  is  St.  Paul's  character 
even  more  than  his  missionary  methods  which  the  missionary 
of  to-day  needs  to  imitate  and  to  make  his  own. 

The  task  of  compiling  this  sketch  of  Christian  missions 
has  been  completed  in  the  midst  of  the  greatest  war 
which  this  earth  has  witnessed,  and  the  issues  of  which 
must  profoundly  affect  the  influence  which  Christian 
principles  will  hereafter  exert  both  in  Europe  and  in  the 
remotest  part  of  the  mission  field.  It  is  impossible  to 
forecast  what  the  future  has  in  store,  or  to  predict  the 
effects  which  the  war  will  have  upon  the  future  of 
Christianity  at  home  and  abroad.  But  though  all  else 
be  enshrouded  in  uncertainty,  which  nothing  but  the 
march  of  time  can  dispel,  there  is  one  occurrence  which 
we  can  predict  with  completest  confidence.  Though  upon 
the  earth  there  be  now  distress  of  nations  with  perplexity, 
the  sea  and  the  waves  roaring,  men's  hearts  failing  them 
for  fear  and  for  looking  after  those  things  which  are 
coming  upon  the  earth,  though  the  powers  of  heaven  be 
shaken  and  the  stars  fall  from  heaven,  one  thing  in  the 
future  is  certain.  Of  its  details  we  may  not  be  sure,  but 
of  the  fact  itself  there  can  be  no  doubt,  the  fact  which 
all  history  demands  and  which  all  revelation  asserts. 
Earth's  greatest  kingdoms  may  have  their  day  and  cease 
to  be,  but  the  establishment  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is 
drawing  nigh,  and  of  this  kingdom  there  shall  be  no  end. 
Other  suns  may  fail  to  rise  or  fade  for  ever  from  our 
view,  but  the  Sun  of  Eighteousness  shall  eventually  arise 
and  the  day  which  it  will  usher  in  will  know  no  evening. 
For  it  is  no  mere  possibility,  no  considerable  probability, 
but  a  glorious  and  complete  certainty,  independent  of 
human  belief  and  unalterable  by  human  incredulity  that 
the  petition  which  has  formed  the  age-long  prayer  of  the 
Christian  Church — "  Thy  kingdom  come  " — will  receive  its 
fulfilment,  and  that  this  fulfilment  will  exceed  the  highest 
hopes  which  anv  who  have  offered  it  have  dared  to  entertain. 


APPENDIX. 

CHEISTIAN  EEUNION  IN  THE  MISSION  FIELD. 

Amongst  the  many  subjects  with  which  a  history  of 
Christian  missions  would  naturally  deal,  but  which  it 
has  been  necessary  to  leave  untouched  through  lack  of 
space,  one  of  the  most  important  is  the  development 
of  Christian  Unity  in  the  Mission  Field.  On  this  the 
writer  of  this  volume  would  like  to  say  a  very  few  words. 
If,  or  rather  when,  Christian  unity  is  achieved  throughout 
Christendom  it  will  probably  be  a  direct  result  of  foreign 
missions.  From  the  point  of  view,  therefore,  of  the  Church 
at  home,  no  less  than  from  that  of  the  Church  in  the 
mission  field,  the  subject  is  one  of  the  greatest  importance. 

On  the  need  for  unity,  or  at  least  for  some  form 
of  combined  action  in  the  mission  field,  there  is  no  need 
to  dwell. 

Dr.  Mott,  in  presenting  the  Eeport  of  the  Commission 
for  Carrying  the  Gospel  to  all  the  non-Christian  World  at 
the  Edinburgh  Conference,  said  : 

"  It  is  our  deep  conviction  that  a  well-considered  plan  of 
co-operation  in  the  missionary  work  of  the  societies  re- 
presented in  this  hall,  entered  into  and  carried  out  with  a 
sense  of  our  oneness  in  Christ,  would  be  more  than  equivalent 
to  doubling  the  present  missionary  staff." 

The  need  for  securing  united  action  in  the  mission 
field  which  the  Edinburgh  Conference  emphasized,  must 
not,  however,  blind  our  eyes  to  the  fact  that  any  union 
which  might  conceivably  be  secured  by  a  willingness  on 
the  part  of  Christian   Churches  to   sink   their   differences 


500  APPENDIX 

and  to  insist  only  on  the  few  doctrinal  points  on  which 
they  were  all  agreed,  would  not  be  worth  securing  and 
could  not  endure.  Any  action  is  to  be  deprecated  which 
will  tend  to  obliterate  the  distinctive  message  which  the 
various  representatives  of  the  Christian  Churches  in  the 
mission  field  have  to  give.  We  believe  that  the  distinctive 
doctrines,  or  the  distinctive  emphasis  which  is  laid  upon 
the  same  doctrine  by  different  Churches,  or  by  dijfferent 
missionary  societies  acting  as  the  agents  of  these  Churches, 
is  of  priceless  value,  if  the  mind  of  Christ  is  to  be  fully 
made  known  to  the  peoples  to  whom  they  are  trying  to 
appeal. 

The  Eoman  Catholic  missionary,  in  the  conscientious 
carrying  out  of  his  missionary  obligation,  lays  emphasis 
upon  the  importance  of  submitting  his  will  and  his 
judgment  to  an  external  authority  which  for  him  is 
embodied  in  Christ's  "  Vicar  on  earth."  He  believes,  too, 
that  by  confession  to  and  absolution  received  from  a  human 
priest,  man's  character  can  best  be  strengthened  and 
purified,  and  that  by  the  reception  of  sacraments  ministered 
by  a  duly  ordained  priest,  vital  union  with  God  can  be 
established  and  maintained.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
Protestant  (as  distinguished  from  the  Eoman,  Greek  and 
Anglican)  Churches  emphasize  in  the  presence  of  the 
non- Christian  world  the  reality  of  man's  individual  re- 
sponsibility alike  for  his  opinions  and  his  actions  and  the 
possibility  of  his  enjoying  close  communion  with  God  apart 
from  the  practice  of  specified  religious  rites,  and  without 
the  help  which  might  be  afforded  by  a  priesthood  that 
claimed  a  direct  succession  from  the  Apostles. 

Lastly,  the  representatives  of  Anglican  missions, 
who  hold  a  position  intermediate  between  the  Eoman 
Catholics  and  the  Protestants,  endeavour  to  combine  the 
teaching  of  both,  and,  whilst  emphasizing  the  value  of 
external  authority  and  of  sacramental  grace,  strive  to 
inculcate  man's  complete  responsibility  as  an  individual. 
It  is  in  the  mission  field  that  the  representatives  of  the 
Churches  can  least  afford  to  lose  sight  of  the  distinctive 


APPENDIX  501 

doctrines  to  which  their  branch  of  the  Christian  Church 
has  borne  witness  in  the  past.  Unity,  therefore,  when  it 
comes,  can  involve  no  compromise  of  principles,  but  it  will 
involve  the  thankful  recognition  that  God  has  worked  in 
the  past  and  will  work  in  the  future  through  men  and 
women  whose  instincts  and  environment  have  led  them 
to  interpret  the  Divine  Revelation  in  very  different  ways 
but  who  are  united  by  a  true  devotion  to  their  common 
Lord.  It  IS  not  compromise,  but  comprehension,  on  which 
our  eyes  are  fixed. 

The  difficulty  which,  more  than  any  other,  at  the 
present  time  stands  in  the  way  of  any  progress  in  the 
direction  of  reunion  as  between  the  Anglican  and  Protestant 
Churches,  is  the  insistence  which  is  laid  by  the  former  on 
the  "  historic  episcopate." 

As  this  difficulty  has  within  recent  years  been  much 
discussed  in  India,  it  maybe  well  to  refer  in  further  detail 
to  the  questions  which  have  there  been  raised. 
_  As  far  as  the  Anglican.  Church  throughout  the  world 
IS  concerned,  the  successful  carrying  out  of  any  scheme  of 
reunion  depends  upon  the  willingness  of  other  churches  to 
accept  as  the  basis  of  reunion  what  is  popularly  known 
as  the  Lambeth  Quadrilateral,  which  was  adopted  by  the 
Lambeth  Conference  in  1888,  and  which  reads  as  follows: 

"  \  Th.«  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments 
as  containing  a  1  things  necessary  to  salvation,  and  beina 
the  rule  and  ultimate  standard  of  faith.  ^ 

thJ'J-   T'^e  Apostles' Creed  as  the  Baptismal  symbol,  and 
the  Nicene  Creed  as  the  sufficient  statement  of  the  Christian 

"3.  The  two  Sacraments  ordained  by  Christ  Himself— 
Baptism  and  the  Supper  of  the  Lord-ministered  with  un- 
failing use  of  Christ's  words  of  institution,  and  of  the 
elements  ordained  by  Him. 

.   ■"*•  ^''^.'>!storicepisoopate,locallyadapted  in  the  methods 

«nH  1.  r"''n™i'°?.,'°.'.'''  ^^""y'^g  "'^sds  of  the  nations 
and  peoples  called  of  God  into  the  Unity  of  His  Church." 

Whilst  nearly  all  the  Churches  now  at  work  in  the 


502  APPENDIX 

mission  field  would  be  prepared  to  accept  the  first  three 
of  these  conditions,  the  acceptance  of  the  fourth  by 
any  of  the  representatives  of  the  Free  Churches  in  Great 
Britain  or  the  non-Episcopal  Churches  in  America,  will 
depend  upon  their  interpretation  of  the  words  "  the 
historic  episcopate."  If  by  these  words  be  implied  the 
doctrine  of  apostolical  succession,  the  validity  of  which  is 
to  depend  upon  the  uninterrupted  and  mechanical  trans- 
mission of  grace  by  the  laying  on  of  hands,  it  is  most 
unlikely  that  any  large  scheme  of  reunion  will  ever  be 
accomplished.  There  are,  however,  many  representatives 
of  Anglican  Churchmen  both  at  home  and  abroad  who 
place  upon  these  words  a  meaning  which  would  render 
the  acceptance  of  this  clause  acceptable  to  very  many 
who  are  at  present  outside  the  Anghcan  Church. 

The  Bishop  of  Madras  (Dr.  Whitehead)  in  a  speech 
on  the  subject  of  Christian  reunion  delivered  to  the 
members  of  the  National  Conference  of  Missionaries  at 
Calcutta  on  December  20,  1912,  quoted  and  endorsed 
the  article  by  Dr.  A.  Headlam  in  The  Prayer-Book  Diction- 
ary (p.  42).     In  the  course  of  which  he  wrote : 

"  The  idea  of  apostolic  succession  ...  is  really  a  deduc- 
tion from  the  right  theory  of  Orders,  and  the  mistake  has 
been  to  make  Orders  depend  upon  apostolic  succession  and 
transmission.  .  .  .  The  authority  to  consecrate  and  ordain, 
or  to  perform  all  spiritual  offices,  resides  in  and  comes  from 
the  Church  to  which  God  gives  His  Holy  Spirit.  .  .  .  The 
idea  of  transmission  is  an  additional  and  late  conception 
which,  instead  of  expressing  the  idea  of  succession,  has  by 
its  exaggeration  of  it  led  to  a  rigid  and  mechanical  theory 
of  the  ministry.  ...  As  the  grace  of  Orders  depends  upon 
the  authority  of  the  Church  and  not  upon  a  mechanical 
transmission,  all  objections  from  supposed  irregularities  of 
ordination  are  beside  the  point,  and  the  opinions  of  Church- 
men and  others  who  have  maintained  that  in  certain  circum- 
stances a  presbyter  may  ordain,  are  explained.  Ordination 
depends  upon  the  authority  of  the  Church,  and  not  the 
Church  upon  ordination." 

As  the  views  which  have  been  expressed  by  the  Bishop 


APPENDIX  503 

of  Madras  form  a  distinct  contribution  to  the  discussion 
of  the  question  of  reunion  in  the  mission  field,  it  is  worth 
while  giving  in  his  own  words  his  plea  for  the  acceptance 
of  the  doctrine  of  episcopacy  as  defined  by  Dr.  Headlam. 
Speaking  in  Calcutta,  the  Bishop  of  Madras  said : 

"  I  believe  myself  that  whatever  the  reason  for  its  adop- 
tion, the  ultimate  ground  for  the  principle  (of  episcopacy) 
lay  in  the  fact  that  it  was  imperatively  needed  as  a  safe- 
guard to  unity ;  and  I  believe  also  that  it  is  as  much  needed 
for  that  purpose  to-day  as  it  was  then,  and  that  it  is  far 
more  needed  in  India  than  it  was  in  the  early  Church.  When 
I  ask, '  If  I  give  up  this,  what  principle  should  I  adopt  ? ' 
I  find  it  can  only  be  this,  that  any  body  of  Christian  men 
and  women  are  at  liberty  to  make  their  own  arrangements 
for  their  own  ministry.  Now  I  have  often  thought  of  this 
alternative  principle,  and  it  seems  to  me  that  not  only  does  it 
everywhere  throw  open  the  door  to  division  and  schism,  but, 
if  we  were  to  proclaim  it  in  India,  the  necessary  and  in- 
evitable result  would  be  the  creation  of  caste  churches. 
When  the  Indian  community  is  freed  from  the  restraints 
of  foreign  missionary  societies,  if  it  accepts  this  principle, 
it  will  necessarily  and  inevitably  take  the  line  of  least 
resistance,  and  then  we  shall  see  in  India  divisions  based 
on  caste,  far  more  numerous  and  infinitely  worse  than  any- 
thing that  the  Church  has  yet  seen  in  East  or  West."  ^ 

The  words  of  the  Bishop  of  Madras  may  help  to  explain 
to  those  who  are  not  members  of  the  Anglican  Church 
why  the  representatives  of  this  Church  in  India  and  else- 
where, in  their  anxiety  to  "safeguard  unity,"  lay  what 
appears  to  them  to  be  undue  emphasis  upon  the  necessity 
of  the  historic  episcopate.  The  plea  which  they  put 
forward  does  not  unchurch  other  Churches,  but  represents 
an  attempt  to  secure  an  increase  of  mutual  fellowship, 
without  sacrifice  of  principle  on  either  side.  If  this  were 
not  so,  or  if  the  proposals  put  forward  by  the  Bishop  of 
Madras  were  equivalent  to  a  proposal  to  absorb  and  re- 
mould on  Anglican  lines  all  other  Churches,  the  prospect 
of  reunion  would  be  far  less  bright  than  it  now  is. 
^  The  next  Step  towards  Unity,  p.  6. 


504  APPENDIX 

One  scheme  for  practical  co-operation  and  federation 
which  was  drawn  up  by  the  representatives  of  a  number 
of  missionary  societies  working  in  East  Africa  has  attracted 
special  attention,  as  it  appears  to  some  to  indicate  the 
lines  on  which  co-operation  in  other  parts  of  the  mission 
field  might  be  attained.  The  scheme  was  drawn  up  at 
a  conference  of  missionaries  which  was  held  at  Kikuyu, 
in  British  East  Africa,  in  June  1913,  and  which  was 
attended  by  representatives  of  all  missionary  societies  in 
that  district  other  than  those  connected  with  the  Eoman 
Church.  The  basis  of  the  federation  was  to  be  the  accept- 
ance of  the  Bible  and  of  the  Apostles'  and  Nicene  Creeds. 
The  same  rules  relating  to  the  admission  of  catechumens 
were  to  be  adopted  by  all  missions  and  Baptism  was  to 
be  administered,  whether  by  sprinkling  or  immersion,  in 
the  name  of  the  Holy  Trinity.  It  was  further  suggested 
that  any  minister  recognized  by  his  own  Church  might 
be  allowed  to  preach,  but  not  to  administer  the  sacraments 
in  a  mission  Church  belonging  to  other  churches.  The 
proposed  scheme  has  since  been  ratified  by  the  Church  of 
Scotland  Foreign  Mission  Committee.  The  conference 
was  followed  by  a  Service  of  Holy  Communion,  at  which 
the  Bishop  of  Uganda  administered  the  Holy  Communion 
to  the  missionaries  of  various  denominations  who  were 
present. 

No  proposals  for  reunion  in  the  mission  field  can  be 
regarded  otherwise  than  as  sadly  incomplete  which  do  not 
include  reunion  with  the  branches  of  the  Church  estab- 
lished by  the  Eoman  Catholic  missions.  What  answer, 
then,  can  be  given  to  the  question — Is  there  any  prospect 
that  the  Church  of  Eome  can  ever  be  included  in  any 
scheme  of  reunion  which  could  commend  itself  to  other 
Christian  Churches  ?  Whilst  on  the  one  hand  it  would  be 
unwise  to  under- estimate  the  difficulties  which  will  have 
to  be  surmounted  before  such  a  reunion  could  be  effected,^ 

^  How  great  these  difficulties  are,  may  be  gathered  from  a  quotation  from 
a  catechism  expressly  authorized  by  Pope  Pius  x.  in  1906  and  published  by 
the   Vatican   Press.     On   page   119   we   read:    "Can   anyone  outside  the 


APPENDIX  505 

on  the  other  hand,  it  would  imply  a  lack  of  faith  in 
the  destiny  of  the  Christian  Church  and  in  the  power  of 
the  Divine  Spirit  to  guide  and  direct  its  members 
if  we  could  bring  ourselves  to  believe  that  the  prospect 
is  hopeless  and  that  the  attitude  of  the  Church  of  Eome 
will  ever  remain  what  it  is  to-day.  Bishop  Brent,  the 
Bishop  of  the  Philippines,  who  was  one  of  the  delegates 
to  the  Edinburgh  Missionary  Conference  in  1910,  referring 
to  the  letter  of  sympathy  which  was  read  to  the  Conference 
from  the  Eoman  Bishop  of  Cremona,  wrote : 

"  The  letter  of  the  Italian  ecclesiastic  which  was  written 
for  the  Conference  was  the  little  cloud  not  larger  than  a 
man's  hand  to-day,  destined  to-morrow  to  cover  the  Eoman 
heavens.  A  major  law  may  temporarily  be  held  in  suspense 
by  a  minor  law.  When  this  happens  we  need  not  be  over- 
anxious. The  issue  is  certain.  Already  the  true  greatness, 
that  is  to  say  the  Catholicism,  of  the  Eoman  Catholic  Church 
is  busy  at  her  heart,  and  the  secondary  power  of  the  Eoman 
curia  can  do  no  more  than  delay  its  triumph.  The  Bishop 
of  Cremona  did  not  speak  of  himself  or  for  himself,  but 
consciously,  or  unconsciously,  voiced  the  mind  of  a  growing 
minority  who  are  the  soul  of  his  communion.  It  may  not 
be  to-morrow,  or  a  century  hence — Christianity,  be  it  re- 
membered, is  very  young — but  ultimate  victory  is  as  sure 
as  Christ  is  real." 

The  need  to  promote  reunion  in  the  mission  field  has 
become  increasingly  urgent  in  recent  years  in  view  of  the 
fact  that  in  India,  China,  and  elsewhere  local  Churches  are 
beginning  to  spring  up,  the  members  of  which  know  nothing 
of  the  past  history  of  the  Christian  Church.     The  danger 

Catholic  Apostolic  Roman  Church  be  saved? — A.  No."  On  page  130: 
"Who  are  they  who  do  not  belong  to  the  Communion  of  Saints? — A.  The 
damned,  and  those  who  belong  neither  to  the  soul  nor  to  the  body  of  the 
Church — that  is,  those  in  mortal  sin  and  those  outside  the  true  Church." 
On  page  131:  "Who  are  outside  the  true  Church? — A.  Infidels,  Jews, 
Heretics,  Apostates,  Schismatics,  and  the  Excommunicate."  "Who  are 
Heretics? — A.  .  .  .  The  various  sects  of  Protestants."  On  page  398: 
"Protestantism  .  .  .  is  the  sum  of  all  Heresies.  .  .  .  The  most  monstrous 
congeries  of  errors,  both  private  and  individual,  and  enfolds  all  Heresies." 


606  APPENDIX 

which  is  involved  in  the  creation  of  such  local  Churches  is 
well  described  by  Dr.  Mott,  who  writes : 

"  Everything  practicable  should  be  done  to  strengthen 
the  bonds  of  union  between  the  new  Churches  in  non- 
Christian  lands  and  the  Church  Universal.  This  point  is  one 
of  cardinal  importance  just  now,  when  independent  Churches 
are  springing  up  on  every  hand,  and  when,  owing  to  the 
growing  national  spirit,  there  is  danger  of  the  development 
of  Churches  in  the  East  which  will  be  separate  in  aims  and 
sympathies,  as  well  as  in  activities,  from  the  Church  in  the 
West.  In  this  connection  the  importance  of  the  study 
of  Church  history  should  be  emphasized  among  both  the 
missionaries  and  the  native  leaders,  as  well  as  among  the 
students  in  theological  colleges  and  Bible  schools.  .  .  .  The 
fact  that  many  of  the  native  Christian  leaders  have  such  a 
poor  historical  sense  makes  it  all  the  more  important  and 
necessary  that  in  this  and  other  ways  we  seek  to  keep  the 
growing  native  Churches  in  closer  touch  with  the  great  con- 
sensus of  the  continuous  Church  of  all  the  ages.  There 
could  be  no  greater  danger  than  for  native  Christianity  to 
become  separate  from  historical,  credal,  oecumenical,  living 
Christianity."  ^ 

In  the  course  of  this  volume  we  have  referred  to  efforts 
which  have  been  made  in  particular  sections  of  the  mission 
field  to  promote  union  or  reunion  between  different  churches 
or  organizations  (see  pp.  142,  203,  232,  504).  The  success 
which  has  already  been  achieved  justifies  the  hope  that 
schemes  of  a  bolder  and  more  far-reaching  character  may 
meet  hereafter  with  a  like  success. 

The  Continuation  Committee  Conferences,  presided  over 
by  Dr.  Mott,  which  were  held  in  India,  China,  and  Japan, 
1912-13,  and  which  were  an  outcome  of  the  Edinburgh 
Missionary  Conference  (1910),  helped  to  focus  the  atten- 
tion of  missionaries  in  the  field  upon  their  common  needs 
and  problems,  and  by  facilitating  joint  counsels  and  joint 
action  prepared  the  way  for  a  closer  union  than  is  at  the 
present  moment  within  sight. 

1  The  Present  World  Situation^  by  J.  E.  Mott,  p.  193  f. 


INDEX 


References  to  missionary  societies  and  organisations  are  given 
under  the  word  "  Societies." 


Abeokuta,  294. 

Abyssinia,  356  f. 

Accra,  292. 

Aden,  132,  272. 

Afghanistan,  274  f.,  469. 

Africa,  276-365 ;  German  East, 34 6  f. ; 

German  South-West,  334  ;  Moslem 

population  of,    465  ;  North-West, 

283-6 ;     Portuguese     East,     338  ; 

South,    general    statistics,    334  f.  ; 

South,  Native  Affairs  Commission, 

335  f. 
African  Lakes  Corporation,  339. 
Aglipay,  Gregorio,  266. 
Agra,  82,  110  f.,  129,  133. 
Ahmaduagar,  90,  104,  131. 
Aird,  R,,  New  Guinea,  463. 
Ajmer,  104,  131. 

Akbar,  Mission  to  the  Court  of,  77. 
Ako,  Tsai,  a  Chinese  Christian,  182. 
Al    Azhar  University,    Cairo,    282, 

467  f. 
Al    Kindi,    author    of   apology    for 

Christianity,  466. 
Alaska,    379-81  ;   Moravian   Mission 

in,  55. 
Alberta,  Indians  in,  385  f. 
Aleutian  Islands,  380. 
Alexis,  Brother,  384. 
Alfred,  King,  votive  offerings  sent  to 

India  by,  65. 
Algeria,  204  f. 
Ali,  Safdar,  133. 
Ali,  Wilayat,  of  Delhi,  92. 
Alifurs  in  Celebes,  263  f. 
All  Saints'   sisterhood,  work   of,  in 

Poona,  104. 
All  Saints'  Sisters  of  the  Poor  in  South 

Africa,  311. 
Allahabad,  90,  112,  129,  132. 
Allen,  Dr.  H.  N.,  in  Corea,  31,  252. 
AUepey,  133. 


607 


Almaheira  Island,  264. 

Almora,  89,  129,  132. 

Alopen,  Nestorian  monk,  166  f. 

Altai  Mission  in  Siberia,  276. 

Alu,  Chinese  bishop,  174. 

Ambala,  90,  132. 

Amboina,  Dutch  Mission  in,  47. 

Ambon  Island,  264. 

Ambrim  Island,  457. 

America,   U.S.A.,    366-81  ;    Canada, 

382-8;    Central,     401-8;    South, 

409-29 ;  missionary  contributions 

of,  494. 
Amida,    sects  of,   in  Japan.    161  f 

219  f. 
Amoy,  183,  185,  193,  195. 
Amritsar,  93,  129,  131. 
Anand,  India,  132. 
Ananzimtote  seminary,  328. 
Ancestor  worship  in  China,  174,  178, 

Anchieta,  Joseph,  in  Brazil,  413. 
Anda,  Governor  of  the  Philippines, 

265.  ^^ 

Andaman  Islands,  156. 
Andrews,  C.  F.,  author  of  The  He- 

naissance  in  India,  62. 
Andros  Island,  West  Indies,  394. 
Aneityum,  New  Hebrides,  457. 
Angelo,  Father,  in  Burma,  151. 
Angola,  306. 
Anhwei,  191,  195,  306. 
Ani,  India,  132. 
Anking,  191. 
Ankole,  353. 
Anne,    Queen,  gift  by,  to  Mohawk 

Christians,  371. 
Annetta  Island,  381. 
Anno  Bon  Island,  300. 
Antigua,  391,  394. 
Antioch,  269. 
Antsirabe  leper  asylum,  362. 


508 


INDEX 


Anvik,  Alaska,  381. 

Appelsbosch,  331. 

Arabia,  271  f. 

Araucanian  Indians,  271  f.,  419. 

Arawaks,  391,  398,  424  f.,  427. 

Arayer,  Cochin,  95. 

Arcot,  90 ;  medical  mission  at,  33. 

Argentine,  409,  412,  422-4. 

Arima,  Japan,  223. 

Arizona,  Indians  in,  379. 

Armenia,  268  f. 

Armstrong,  Bishop,  of  Grahamstown, 
311. 

Arnobius,  rt  early  missions  to  the 
Chinese,  164. 

Arnold,  a  Franciscan  missionary  to 
China,  170. 

Arnot,  P.  S.,  303. 

Asaba,  river  Niger,  298. 

Ashanti,  292. 

Asia  Minor,  the  seven  churches  of, 
17 ;  spread  of  Christianity  in, 
268  f. 

Aspland,  Dr.,  in  China,  29. 

Assam,  91,  117  f.,  120,  124. 

Assemani,^i6Zio</ieca  OrientaHs,lQ5n. 

Astrup,  Bishop  Nils,  331. 

Asuncion,  Paraguay,  419. 

Atafu  Island,  453. 

Athelstan  sent  to  India  by  King 
Alfred,  65. 

Attabari,  Assam,  117. 

Auchmuty,  Rev.  S.,  371. 

Auckland,  N.Z.,  442  f.,  454. 

Augustine  of  Hippo,  283  ;  re  employ- 
ment of  force  as  a  missionary 
agency,  18. 

Augustine,  St.,  a  city  in  Florida,  366. 

Aurukun,  Australian  aborigines  at, 
435. 

Austin,  Bishop,  of  British  Guiana, 
425. 

Austral  Islands,  449. 

Australia,  aborigines  in,  430-8  ; 
Moslems  in,  466 ;  other  non- 
Christian  peoples  in,  438. 

Ava,  Burma,  151. 

Aves,  Bishop  H.  D.,  of  Mexico,  408. 

Awakening  of  Faith,  The,  161. 

Azariah,  Bishop.     See  Dornakal. 

Bacon,  L.  W.,  re  Spanish  Missions 

in  North  America,  366  f. 
Badagry,  West  Africa,  294. 
Bagabos,  Philippines,  266. 
Bagamoyo,  347. 
Baghavad   Gita    and    the    Christian 

Scriptures,  61  f. 
Bahamas,  391,  393  f. 


Bahia,  state  of,  413,  416. 

Bahrein,  272. 

Bahr-el-Ghazal,  283,  304. 

Ballagh,  Rev.  J.  H.,  226. 

Balolo  tribe,  303. 

Baluchistan,  273  f. 

Banda,  111. 

Bandawe,  Nyasaland,  340. 

Banerjea,  Krishna  Mohan,  89. 

Bangalore,  102,  131,  133. 

Bangkok,  258. 

Bangweolo,  Lake,  341. 

Banks  Islands,  456. 

Bankura,  Wesleyan  College  at,  129. 

Bannu,  108,  274. 

Baptisms  of  Jews  during  nineteenth 

century,  475. 
Baptists  in  India,  123. 
Bara,  Madagascar,  362. 
Baralong,  322. 

Baraza,  Cyprian,  in  Paraguay,  419. 
Barbados,  35,  391,  395-7. 
Barbuda  Island,  394. 
Barclay,  Rev.  W.,  371. 
Bareilly,  131  f. 
Barisal,  82,  116. 
Baroda,  124  f. ;  primary  education  in, 

103. 
Barotsi,  the,  323. 
Barotsiland,  333. 
Barranquilla,  Colombia,  428  f. 
Barripore,  Bengal,  85. 
Bartica,  British  Guiana,  425. 
Bartle  Bay,  New  Guinea,  464. 
Barton,    Dr.    S.    L.,  re  missions   in 

Turkey,  270. 
Basutoland,  313,  322  f.,  333. 
Bataks,  259  f. 
Batanga  Land,  300. 
Batavia,  261,  264. 
Bateman,  Rev.  R.,  133. 
Batetela  tribe.  River  Congo,  303. 
Batticaloa,  Ceylon,  146. 
Battleford,  Indian  school  at,  385. 
Bavianskloof,   G.    Schmidt    at,    54, 

309. 
Bechuanaland,  314,  316,  321  f. 
Behar,    number    of    Christians    in, 

115  n.  ;  R.C.  Christians  in,  122. 
Beira,  322  f. 
Belgian  missionaries  in  ChotaNagpur, 

114. 
Belize,  405  f. 

Bellary,  L.M.S.  College  at,  129. 
Bembezi,  315. 
Benares,  82,  112,  132,  140  ;  Victoria 

hosjntal  at,  37. 
Bengal,    115-7  ;    number    of    Chris- 
tians in,  120. 


INDEX 


509 


Benin,  299. 

Bennet,    catecliist,    of    the   Mohawk 

Mission,  375. 
Bensley,    speech   of,   at    East   India 

House,  85. 
Benu^  River,  299. 
Berbice,  424  f. 
Betgeri-Gadag,  132. 
Bethel,  New  Jersey,  37. 
Bethelsdorp,  316. 
Bethesda,  South  Australia,  433. 
Betsileo  tribe,  Madagascar,  362. 
Beyrout,  270. 
Beza,  Theodore,    re  the   missionary 

command,  43. 
Bezwada,  98,  133. 
Bhakti,  doctrine  of,  62. 
Bhandara,  131. 
Bhils,  missions  to,  110. 
Bhot,  132. 
Bible  societies  in  India,   140  f.     See 

under  Societies. 
Bickersteth,    Bishop   E.,    of  Japan, 

109. 
Bigandet,  Father,  151. 
Bihe,  303,  306. 
Biscoe,  Rev.  C.  Tyndale,  108. 
Bishop,     Mrs.,    re     degradation     of 

women  in  non-Christian  lands,  40. 
Bishop's  College,  Calcutta,  85,  131. 
Bismarck  Archipelago,  454,  461. 
Bisrampur,  110. 
Blackfeet  Indians,  383. 
Blacklead  Island,  387. 
Blantyre,  339-41. 
Bloemfontein,  313  f. 
Blunt,  Mr.,  re  condition  of  Indian 

Christians,  125. 
Blythswood,  Transkei,  324  f. 
Boardman,  Rev.  G.  D.,  153. 
Boehm,  A.  W.,  48. 
Boemish,    Moravian    missionary    to 

Greenland,  51. 
Bolivia,  409,  419. 
Bombay,  82,  104. 
Bompas,  Bishop  W.  C,  385,  388. 
Book  of  Governors,  The,  164  n. 
Boone,  Bishop  W.  S.,  of  Shanghai, 

4,  191. 
Boone  University  College,  191,  201  f. 
Borghese,  Xavier,  78. 
Boric,  Bishop,  in  China,  209. 
Borneo,  261-3  ;  Dutch,  259,  263  f. 
Bororos  in  Brazil,  415. 
Botshabelo,  Transvaal,  326. 
Bougainville  Island,  458. 
Bowen,  Bishop,  of  Sierra  Leone,  288. 
Boxers,    insurrection   of,    in   China, 

210  f.,  213  :  number  of  Christians 


massacred  by,  198  f.  ;  their  respect 
for  medical  missions,  31  f. 

Boyle,  Hon.  Robert,  56  f.,  370. 

Brainerd,  Rev.  David,  370  f.,  486. 

Brantford,  Mohawk  Institution  at, 
57. 

Brazil,  409,  413-6. 

Brazzaville,  306. 

Brebeuf,  Father,  382. 

Brent,  Bishop  C.  H.,  re  the  condi- 
tion of  the  R.C.  Church  in  the 
Philippines,  265  f.  ;  re  reunion 
with  the  R.C.  Church,  505. 

Brett,  W.  H.,  in  British  Guiana,  425. 

Brindabun,  India,  132. 

Brisbane,  Archbishop  of,  re  missions 
to  aborigines,  436. 

Bristol,  New  England,  375. 

British  East  Africa  Protectorate, 
342  f. 

British  Guiana,  424-6. 

British  Honduras,  405  f. 

Brito,  Felipe  de,  151. 

Brito,  Juan  de,  77  f. 

Brooke,  G.  AVilmot,  298. 

Brooke,  Rajah  James,  261. 

Brooks,  Rev.  S.  M.  W.,  a  martyr  in 
China,  190. 

Broomhall,  Marshall,  re  Kublai 
Khan,  172. 

Broughton,  Bishop,  of  Australia, 
431,  440. 

Brown,  Rev.  D.,  in  Calcutta,  84. 

Brown,  Dr.  Edith,  30. 

Brown,  Dr.  George,  461. 

Brownrigg,  Sir  R.,  146. 

Bruce,  Rev.  Dr.  R.,  273. 

Bruguiere,  Bishop,  in  Corea,  249. 

Brunei,  Borneo,  261. 

Bryce,  Lord,  re  religion  in  South 
America,  411. 

Buchanan,  Rev.  Claudius,  in  Cal- 
cutta, 84. 

Buchanan,  Deaconess,  436  f. 

Budd,  Rev.  H.,  384. 

Buddhism,  in  Burma,  156  f,  ;  in 
China,  160-3  ;  in  Ceylon,  149. 

Budu,  Uganda,  350. 

Buenos  Ayres,  412. 

Bugia,  Raymond  Lull  in,  467. 

Bugotu  Islands,  458. 

Buluwayo,  315. 

Bundaberg,  Queensland,  438. 

Bunyoro,  353. 

Bureau  of  Catholic  Indian  Missions, 
379. 

Burma,  missions  in,  151-9  ;  number 
of  Christians  in,  120  f.  ;  R.C. 
Christians  in,  122. 


510 


INDEX 


Burns,  Rev.   W.  C,  in  China,  183; 

195. 
Bum  Island,  264. 
Busoga,  353. 
Bussorah,  272. 
Butler,  Dr.  Fanny,  37. 
Byu,  Ko  Tha,  in  Burma,  153. 


Cabacaburi,  British  Guiana,  425. 

Cabral,  P.  A.,  68,  413. 

Cabul,  165. 

Cacliar,  Assam,  117. 

Caico  Islands,  West  Indies,  394. 

Cairo,  281,  467. 

Calabar,  Old,  299. 

Calamina,    traditional    site    of    St. 

Thomas'  martyrdom,  64. 
Calcutta,  115  f.  ;  missionary  colleges 

in,  129-31. 
Caldecott,    Professor,    re  negroes  in 

the  West  Indies,  390. 
Caldwell,  Bishop  R.,  94,  99  ;  re  R.C. 

converts  in  Tinnevelly,  74. 
Calicut,  132  ;  discovery  of  coins  at, 

62. 
California,  Indians  in,  379  ;  Moravian 

missions  in,  55. 
Callawav,    Bishop   H.,  of  Grahams- 
town,"  36,  311. 
Callaway,    Rev.    R.    F.,    re    colour 

antipathy  in  Africa,  336  f. 
Calvin,  re  foreign  missions,  43. 
Cambaluc,  170n.     See  Peking. 
Cambridge    University    Mission    to 

Delhi,  109. 
Cameroons,  300. 
Campbell,  Rev.  D,  E.,  of  Cawnpore, 

92. 
Canada,  Indians  in,  382-7  ;  Eskimos 

in,  387  f. 
Candida,  a  Chinese  Christian,  176. 
Canham,  Rev.  T.  H.,  388. 
Canton,  183,  185,  189,  193. 
Cape  Bedford  Mission,  433. 
Cape  Coast  Castle,  291  f. 
Capen,  Dr.  E,  W. ,  re  Basel  industrial 

missions,  101  f.  ;  re  sociological  re- 
sults of  missions,  496  f. 
Capetown,  309,  326. 
Caracas,    429  ;     Archbishop    of,     re 

religion  in  Caracas  and  Venezuela, 

410. 
Carey,  William,  14,  81-3,  478. 
('aribs,  390,  398,  406. 
Carnarvon,  South  Africa,  325. 
Carolina,    South,    Indians   in,    372 ; 

negro  slaves  in,  373. 
Caroline  Islands,  158  f.,  462. 


Carpentaria,  Bishop  of,  re  missions 
to  aborigines,  433  f. 

Carthage,  283. 

Carthagena,  South  America,  428. 

Cary,  Dr.  Otis,  re  secret  Christians 
in  Japan,  228  ;  re  Christianity  and 
patriotism,  243  ;  re  R.C.  Christians 
in  Japan,  221,  225. 

Casas,  Las,  401-4;  his  protest  against 
employment  of  physical  force,  19. 

Cassels,  Bishop,  of  Western  China, 
193. 

Caste,  in  the  Christian  Church, 
86-8  ;  influence  of,  127. 

CafJiay  and  the  JVay  Thither^  quota- 
tion from,  169. 

Cawnpore,  111,  129. 

Cayenne,  French  Guiana,  426. 

Cayuses,  378. 

Celebes,  263. 

Central  America,  401-6. 

Central  Provinces  of  India,  110. 

Ceram  Island,  264. 

Cerqueira,  Bishop,  re  number  of 
Christians  in  Japan,  221  n. 

Ceylon,  145-50  ;  Dutch  missions  in, 
20,  46. 

Chaco  Indians,  South  America,420-2. 

Chalmers,  James,  448,  463. 

Charnan,  Baluchistan,  274. 

Chanda,  110. 

Chapman,  Bishop,  of  Colombo,  147. 

Charlestown,  school  for  negroes  in, 
373. 

Chater,  James,  146. 

Chavannes,  M.,  163. 

Cheetham,  Bishop,  of  Sierra  Leone, 
294. 

Chefoo,  190. 

Chekiang,  189,  195. 

Chemulpo,  254, 

Chenab  colony,  Punjab,  106. 

Chengtu,  168,  189,  197,  202. 

Cherequois,  Emperor  of  the,  373. 

Cherokees,  377  f.,  380. 

Chiapa,  Las  Casas,  Dishop  of,  403. 

Chickasaw  Indians,  374. 

Chieng  Mai,  258. 

Chienlung,  Emperor  of  China,  ISO. 

Chihli,  195,  201. 

Chikore,  Rhodesia,  328. 

Chili,  409,  418  f. 

China,  160-218  :  Nestorian  missions 
in,  164-9  ;  Franciscan  missions  in, 
170-5  ;  Jesuit  missions  in,  175-81  ; 
Moslems  in,  465  ;  table  showing 
increase  of  Christians  in,  199  f.; 
medical  missions  in,  203  ;  schools 
for  blind  in,  204  ;   work  amon<^st 


INDEX 


511 


women  in,  204  f.  ;  Student  Volun- 
teer Movement  in,  205  ;  missionary 
workers  in,  205. 

Chinanfu,  190,  195  f. 

Chinchun,  254. 

Chinese,  in  Alaska,  380  ;  in  Austra- 
lia, 438  ;  in  Burma,  156  ;  in 
Borneo,  262  ;  in  British  Guiana, 
424,  426 ;  in  Canada,  388  ;  in 
Hawaii,  446  ;  in  Manila,  266 ; 
in  Samoa,  451  ;  in  Siam,  183 ; 
in  Singapore,  257. 

Chinese  bishop,  consecration  of  a, 
174. 

Chinese  character,  features  of,  207  f. 

Chingching,  author  of  inscription  at 
Hsianfu,  165  f. 

Chingchoufu,  196. 

Chinkoni,  North-West  Rhodesia,  333. 

Chins,  Burma,  153,  156. 

Chippewa  Indians,  367  fT,  377,  380, 
385. 

Chiriguanos,  Argentine,  422. 

Chishwasha,  Mashonaland,  333. 

Chitagong,  82. 

Choctaws,  378,  380. 

Chofa,  River  Congo,  303. 

Cholchol,  Chili,  419. 

Chopiland,  315. 

Chota  Nagpur,  112-5  ;  methods  of 
R.C.  missionaries  in,  20. 

Chowan,  North  Carolina,  373. 

Christaller,  Rev.  J.  G.,  Gold  Coast, 
292. 

Christian  College,  Madras,  89,  96. 

Christian  Faith  Society,  57  f. 

Christian  Literature  Society  for  China, 
197. 

Christian  Literature  Society  in  India, 
143  ;    in  Japan,  232. 

Christie,  Dr.  D.,of  Moukden,  29,  213. 

Chuhras,  Indian  caste  of,  106. 

Chuki,  189. 

Chuma,  Livingstone's  servant,  319. 

Chunder,  Ram,  of  Delhi,  109. 

Chung  Hua  Sheng  Kung  Hui 
(Anglican  Church  in  China),  188, 
203. 

Church  Missionary  Society,  history 
of,  186  n. 

Clark,  Rev.  Robert,  133. 

Clarkabad,  105. 

Clarke,  Dr.  G.,  36. 

Claver,  Blessed  Peter,  428  f. 

Clay,  Rev.  J.,  at  Cuddapah,  99. 

Clement  of  Alexandria  re  death  of  St. 
Thomas,  63. 

Clement  xi.,  his  decree  relating  to 
Jesuit  missionaries,  76. 


Cobbold,  Rev.  R.,  183. 

Cochin,    State    of,    95  ;    number    of 

Christians  in,  120  f.  ;   Black  Jews 

in,  473. 
Cockey,   Rev.   H.   E.,   of  Cawnpore, 

92. 
Codrington,  General,  of  Barbados,  35, 

396  f. 
Coillard,  Fran9ois,  322  f.  ;  re  mission 

to  the  Matabele,  320. 
Coke,  Rev.  Dr.,  391,  395. 
Colbeck,  Rev.  James,  155. 
Colenso,  Bishop  J.  W.,  Natal,  312. 
Coleridge,  Bishop,  of  Barbados,  397  ; 

in  British  Guiana,  425. 
Colombia,  409,  427-9. 
Colombo,  146-8. 
Colonial    and     Continental    Church 

Society  in  the  Bahamas,  393. 
Colour  antipathy  in   South   Africa, 

336  f. 
Columbia,  British,  Indians  in,  385  f. 
Columbus,  401. 

Compromise  v.  comprehension,  501. 
Congo  River,  301-6  ;    R.C.  missions 

on,  301  f.  ;  French,  305  f. 
Congregational  missionary  societies. 

See  under   Societies,    L.M.S.    and 

A.B.C.F.M. 
Congregationalists,    number    of,    in 

India,  121,  125. 
Conjevaram,  132  f. 
Constantinople,  270. 
Continuation  Committees,  506. 
Cook,  Captain,  in  Tahiti,  447. 
Cook  Islands,  449  f.,  459. 
Cooper  River  District,  372. 
Coorg,  136. 

Copeland,  Rev.  Patrick,  79. 
Copenhagen,  Missionary  College  at, 

48. 
Coptic  Christians,  281  f. 
Coranderok,  Victoria,  433. 
Corea,  247-55  ;  medical  missions  in, 

31. 
Corfe,  Bishop,  of  Corea,  249,  254. 
Corisco  Islands,  300. 
Cornish,   Bishop  Kestell,  of   Mada- 
gascar, 361. 
Corporation   for  the  Propagation   of 

the  Gospel  in  New  England,    56, 

369. 
Corrie,  Bishop  D.,  of  Madras,  84,  86. 
Cortes,  in  Mexico,  406  f. 
Cosmas  Indicopleustes,    his   visit   to 

India,  65  ;  re  Christians  in  Sumatra, 

2eo. 

Costa  Rica,  406. 

Cottayam,  cross  discovered  at,  65, 


512 


INDEX 


Cotterill,  Bishop,    of  Grahamstown, 

311. 
Cowan,  Dr.  B.  S.,  272. 
Cowley  Fathers  in  Poona,    104  ;   in 

Madras,  311. 
Crees,  383,  385. 
Crimea,  Karaite  Jews  in,  473. 
Cromwell,    his  support  of  the  New 

England  Company,  56  ;  expedition 

to  Jamaica  organized  by,  392. 
Crowther,  Bishop,  294-8. 
Crusades  and  missions  to   Moslems, 

466. 
Cuarteron,  Father,  in  Labuan,  263. 
Cuba,  399,  401  f. 
Cuddalore,  79. 
Cuddapah,  97,  99. 
Currier,  Father,  re  religion  in  Brazil, 

415. 
Cushing,  Dr.,  of  Burma,  154. 
Cushman,  Robert,  of  Massachusetts, 

369. 
Cuzco,  Peru,  418. 
Cyprian,  of  Carthage,  283. 

Dacca,  82,  115  ;  university  at,  130. 
Dahne,    G.,    missionary    in    Dutch 

Guiana,  53. 
Dahomey,  293  f. 

Dakota,  South,  Indians  in,  376,  379. 
Dalman,  Dr.,   re  number  of  Jewish 

converts,  473. 
Dalton,  Dr.  G.,  in  Jerusalem,  36. 
Damaraland,  325,  333. 
Damascene,    John,     author    of    The 

Superstition  of  the  Ishmaelites,  466. 
Damascus,    statement   by  Pasha   of, 

38  n. 
Damien,  Father,  446. 
Daniel,  Rev.  E.,  146. 
Danish  Church  in  Greenland,  52. 
Danish-Halle  Mission,  47-9. 
Dar-es-Salaam,  346  f. 
Darien  expedition,  369. 
Darjeeling,  117. 
Darwin,  Charles,  in  Tierra  del  Fuego, 

424  ;  in  New  Zealand,  431. 
Darwin,  Mount,  307. 
Daveluy,  M.,  in  Corea,  249, 
David,  Rev.  Christian,  in  Ceylon,  84. 
Davies,  Rev.  V.,  at  Cuddapah,  99. 
Dawes,  W.,  in  Antigua,  395. 
Dawson,  T.  C,  re  Indians  in  Brazil, 

414. 
de  Maila,  Jesuit  missionary,  254  f. 
Dearing,    Dr.    J.    D.,    re   cordiality 

among  Christians  in  Japan,  232. 
Delagoa  Bay,  315. 
Delawares,  377. 


Delhi,  missions  at,  82,  109  ;  mutiny 

at,  92  ;  St.  Stephen's  College,  129. 
Delitzsch,  Dr.,  re  number  of  Jewish 

converts,  473. 
Demerara,  55,  424  f. 
Dera  Ghasi  Khan,  108. 
Dera  Ismail  Khan,  93,  108,  131. 
Dhar,  132. 

Dibrugarh,  Assam,  117. 
Diego  Suarez,  363. 
Dinajpur,  82. 
Dindings,  Malaysia,  256. 
Dingaan,  chief,  310. 
Disruption  in  Scotland,  its  effect  on 

missions,  482. 
Dober,  Leonard,  Moravian  missionary, 

50. 
Dobu  Island,  464. 
Dogura,  New  Guinea,  464. 
Doherty,  "West  African  catechist,  294. 
Dominic,  Abb6,  re  Mexican  Christi- 
anity, 408. 
Dominica,  390,  394. 
Dornakal,  mission   at,    101  ;  Bishop 

of,  100  f.,  135. 
Dorville,  Father,  in  Tibet,  217. 
Doshisha  College,  Japan,  231,  233. 
Drysdale,  R,,  aborigines  mission  at, 

437. 
Du   Plessis,  J.,  307  n.;    re   Scottish 

missions  in  South  Africa,  325. 
Dublin  University  mission  to  Chota 

Nagpur,  114,  131  ;  to  China,  190. 
Dubois,  Abbe,  re  Christians  in  South 

India,  76,  78. 
Duff,  Dr.  Alexander,  88-90. 
Duff  mission  ship,  448,  450. 
Dufresse,  Bishop,  in  China,  209. 
Duke  of  York  Islands,  461. 
Dun,    Maung  Tha,  Burmese  hermit, 

158  f. 
Duncan,  Rev.  J.,  of  New  Zealand,  443. 
Duncan,    W.,    of  Metlakahtla,  381, 

385  f. 
Dundee,  South  Africa,  331. 
Duperry,  Commander,  re  work  of  the 

L.M.S.  in  the  Pacific,  449. 
Dutch  East  India  Company,  46. 
Dutch  East  Indies,  119. 
Dutch  missions   in   Ceylon,  20,    45, 

46  ;  in  Formosa,  47. 
Dutch    Reformed    Church   missions, 

328-30. 
Dwane,  Rev.  J.  M.,  S12,  338. 
Dyaks,  262-4. 

Eales,  re  Burmese  Buddhism,  157. 
East   India    Company,    its    attitude 
towards  missions,  79,  81,  85. 


INDEX 


513 


East  Indies,  Dutch,  259-61. 

Ebenezer,  Bengal,  117. 

Ebon  Islands,  459. 

Ecuador,  409,  427-9. 

Eddy,  Sherwood,  in  China,  201. 

Edendale,  Swaziland,  322, 

Edessa,  164  f.,  268. 

Edinburgh  Conference,  499  ;  quota- 
tion from  Reports  of,  208  n. 

Education,  missionary,  in  India, 
128-31. 

Educational  missions,  22-7. 

Edwardes,  Sir  Herbert,  93,  105. 

Efate  Nguna  Islands,  457. 

Egba,  294. 

Egede,  Hans,  missionary  to  Green- 
land, 49. 

Egypt,  280-2. 

Egypt  General  Mission,  282. 

Ekanayake,  Rev.  G.  B.,  re,  Buddhist 
revival  in  Ceylon,  149  f. 

Ekukuleni,  331. 

Elikana,  a  South  Sea  Island  mission- 
ary, 459. 

Elim-Hope,  Queensland,  433. 

Eliot,  John,  missionary  to  the 
Indians,  56,  369  f.,  375  f. 

Ellice  Islands,  458  f. 

Ellis,  Rev.  T.,  of  Burma,  158. 

Ellore,  133. 

Elmslie,  Dr.,  in  Kashmir,  32,  108. 

Elphinstone,  re  Mission  to  Court 
of  Akbar,  77. 

Elton,  Rev.  W.  H.,  of  Borneo,  262. 

Erabu,  East  Africa,  342. 

Emgwali  River,  325. 

Erapandeni,  Mashonaland,  333. 

Engcobo,  312. 

Enhlonhlweni,  313. 

Ensor,  Rev.  G.  E.,  of  Japan,  227. 

Epalle,  Bishop,  in  Solomon  Islands, 
458. 

Epi  Island,  457. 

Episcopate,  the  historic,  501-3. 

Erasmus,  re  obligation  to  evangelize 
the  world,  43. 

Eritrea,  356. 

Erromanga,  Kew  Hebrides,  456  f. 

Eskimos,  387  f.  ;  in  Alaska,  380. 

Essequibo,  424  f. 

Estcourt,  312. 

Ethiopian  Movement  in  South  Afrioa, 
337  f. 

Ethiopian  Order,  338. 

Eubank,  R. ,  re  R.C.  missions  in  China, 
209. 

Eusebius,  re  visit  of  Pantsenus 
to  India,  63 ;  re  St.  Mark's 
preaching  in  Egypt,  280. 

33 


Evangelical  Union  of  South  America, 
418,  423. 

Fabricius,     of    the    Danish  -  Halle 

Mission,  49. 
Fakaafo  Islands,  453. 
Falconer,  Father,  in  Paraguay,  419. 
Falkland  Islands,  423. 
Faradj,     Abou'l,    re     Christians    in 

China,  168. 
Farquhar,   J.    N.,    author    of    The 

Grown  of  Hinduism,  62. 
Farrukhabad,  93. 
Fatehgarh,  90,  92,  132. 
Fatshan,  China,  195. 
Ferdinand,  King  of  Spain,  402. 
Fernandez,  Brother  Juan,  220  f. 
Fernando  Po,  300  f. 
Ferreol,  Bishop  J.,  in  Corea,  249. 
Ferozepore,  132. 
Fiji  Islands,  450,  452  f.,  461  f. 
Fingoes,  325. 
Flatheads,  Indians,  377. 
Fleche,  Father,  382. 
Florida,  missions  in,  366. 
Fly  River,  New  Guinea,  463. 
Foochow,  185,  187,  189  f.  ;  Christian 

University  at,  202. 
Forman   College,    Lahore,    89,    lOG, 

129. 
Formosa,    195,    245  f.  ;    Dutch  mis- 
sions in,  46  f. 
Forrest    River    Mission,    Australia, 

432,  436. 
Fort  Hunter,  Indians  at,  371  f. 
Fort  MacPherson,  385. 
Fort  Simpson,  385. 
Fort  Wrangel,  Alaska,  380. 
Fort  Yukon,  385. 
Foundling  hospitals  in  China,  176. 
Fourah  Bay  College,  289. 
Fox,  George,  re  obligation  to  preach 

the  Gospel,  45. 
Fox,  H.  W.,  of  Masulipatam,  98. 
Foxes,  Indians,  368. 
Francis  d'Assisi,  as  a  missionary  to 

Moslems,  466. 
Franciscan  missions  to  China,  170-5. 
Francistown,  Mashonaland,  315. 
Eraser,  Rev.  A.  G.,  of  Ceylon,  147. 
Fraser,  Rev.  Donald,  re   Islam  and 

Christian  missions  in  Nyasaland, 

339  f. 
Free    Methodist    Church   in    South 

Africa,  322. 
Freeman,  Rev.  J.  E.,  of  Cawnpore, 

02. 
Freeman,  Mr.,  Dutch  missionary  to 

Indians,  371. 


514 


INDEX 


Freetown,  288. 

French,  Bishop,  of  Lahore,  13B,  272. 

Frere,  Sir  Bartle,  93. 

Frere  Town,  East  Africa,  342. 

Friendly  Islands,  448,  450. 

Froez,  Father,  in  Japan,  220. 

Frumentius,   Bishop,   356  ;   hi?  visit 

to  India,  64. 
Fullerton,   Colonel,   re   influence  of 

Schwartz,  80. 
Fusan,  Corea,  252,  254. 
Futuna  Islands,  457. 
FyfTe,    Bishop  K.   S.,    of  Rangoon, 

156. 
Fyzabad,  93. 

Gaboon  River,  300. 

Gairdner,    Rev.    W.    H.    T.,    re  Al 
Azhar  University,  467. 

Galatians,   St.  Paul's  work  amongst 
the,  10-12. 

Galle,  Ceylon,  146,  148. 

Gambia,  287  ;  Moslems  from,  467. 

Gambier  Islands,  440. 

Gangpur,  R.C.  Christians  in,  122. 

Gardiner,    Captain  Allen,  310,  421. 
423. 

Garenganze,  303. 

Gauld,  Dr.  W.,  in  China,  35. 

Gaza,  C.M.S.  work  in,  271. 

Geddie,  Rev.  J.,  in  New  Hebrides, 
457. 

Gela  Islands,  458. 

Genghis  Khan,  273. 

George  i. ,  letter  from,  48. 

George,  Diocese  of,  312. 

Georgetown,  British  Guiana,  428. 

Gobat,  Bishop,  of  Jerusalem,  357. 

Goble,  Mr.,  in  Japan,  244. 

Godden,     Rev.      0.     C,      in     New 
Hebrides,  456. 

Gokhale,  Mr.,  140, 

Gold  Coast,    290-3  ;   IMoravian  mis- 
sion on  the,  54. 

Gollmer,  Rev.  C.  A.,  294. 

Gomes,  Rev.  W.  H.,  256. 

Gondia,  110. 

Gondokoro,  304. 

Gondophares,  a  Parthian  chief,  63. 

Gonds,  missions  to,  110. 

Gonin,  a  missionary  in   the   Trans- 
vaal, 329. 

Gordon,  Captain,  in  Assam,  117. 

Gordon,  General,  348. 

Goreh,  Nehomiah,  re  significance  of 
caste,  87. 

Gossner,  Pastor  J.  E.,  92,  112. 

Graaf  Reinet,  316. 

Grahamstown,  Diocese  of,  312. 


Gray,  Bishop,  of  Capetown,  310. 
Greek  Church  Missions.     See  undei 

Russia. 
Green  Bay,  U.S.A.,  368. 
Greene,    Dr.    D.    C,     re    educated 

Christians  in  Japan,  229. 
Georgia,  Moravian   mission  to,   53  ; 

Indians  and  negroes  in,  374. 
Gerhard,  Johann,  re  the  missionary 

obligation,  43  f. 
Gerick*^,  Rev.  C.  W.,  missionary  in 

South  India,  80,  86. 
German  East  Africa,  346. 
German  South-West  Africa,  306  f. 
Geruiiston,  Transvaal,  322. 
Geronimo,    an    Arab     Christian    in 

Algiers,  285. 
Ghose,  Mohesh  Chunder,  89. 
Gidney,  Rev.  W.  T.,  re  number  of 

Jewish  converts,  476. 
Gilbert,  Sir  Humphrey,  368. 
Gilbert  Islands,  458  f.,  462. 
Gilmour,  Rev.  James,  215  f. 
Girard,  M.,  225. 
Gisborne,  New  Zealand,  443. 
Glasgow  Missionary  Society,  324. 
Gnadenhiltten,  New  York  State,  54. 
Gnosticism,  its  influence  on  Chinese 

Buddhism,  162. 
Goa,  68,  70,  75. 
Goajira,  Indians  in,  428. 
Goanese  Christians  in    East  Africa, 

346. 
Greenfield,  Miss,  at  Ludhiana,  30. 
Greenland,  387  ;  Moravian  Missions 

in,  50-3. 
Greig,    Peter,    a    martyr    in    West 

Africa,  482. 
Grenada  Island,  West  Indies,  398. 
Greytown,  Nicaragua,  405. 
Gribble,  Rev.  J.  R.,  433f. 
Grierson,  Dr.  G.  A.,  re  doctrine  of 

hlmkti,  62. 
Griqualand,  314,  316,  325  f. 
Griswold,   Professor,  re   missions  in 

the  Punjab,  107  f. 
Groot  Island,  433. 
Grubb,    W.    B.,   re  Chaco   Indians, 

421. 
Grliber,  Father,  in  Tibet,  217. 
Griitzner,  a  missionary  in  Kaff"raria, 

326. 
Guadalcanar  Island,  457  f. 
Guam  Island,  459  f.,  462. 
Guatemala,  402-4,  406. 
Guiana,   British,  424-6  ;  Dutch,  53, 

426  f.  ;  French,  426. 
Guinea,    French,    286 ;   Portuguese, 

286. 


INDEX 


515 


Guintiess,  Grattan,  303. 

Gujerat,  104,  132. 

Gujranwala,  123. 

Gulu,  Sudan,  283. 

Guntur,  India,  123,  133,  137. 

Gutzlaff,  Mr.,  in  Japan,  244,  250. 

Hadjipore,  92. 

Hainan,  195. 

Hakodate,  225. 

Hale,  Archdeacon,  South  Australia, 

431. 
Hall,  Rev.  C,   in  North   Carolina, 

373. 
Hall,  Fielding,  author  of  The  Soul 

of  a  People,  156  f. 
Halle,    missionary    organization   at, 

47  f. 
Hanaloa,    missionary    in     Molokai, 

446. 
Hangchow,  189. 
Hankow,  191,  196. 
Hanlon,  Mgr.,  354. 
Hannington,  Bishop,  of  Uganda,  349. 
Harbour  Islands,  West  Indies,  394. 
Hare,      Bishop,     Apostle     to     the 

Indians,  376. 
Harms,  Pastor  L.,  326. 
Harnack,  Dr.,  re  spread  of  Christi- 
anity   in    Asia    Minor,    268 ;     re 

Christianity  in  North- West  Africa, 

284. 
Harpur,  Dr.,  in  Egypt,  281. 
Harris  school,  Madras,  133. 
Hart,    Dr.    S.    L.,    of  Tientsin,  27, 

194. 
Hassan,  India,  132. 
Hau  Hau  fanaticism,  441  f. 
Hausaland,  Moslems  from,  467. 
Hausas,  missions  to,  298  f. 
Havana,  399. 
Hawaii  Islands,  445-7. 
Hawaiian    Evangelical    Association, 

459. 
Haycock,  Rev.  W.  H.,  of  Cawnpore, 

92. 
Hayti,  390,  399. 
Hazaribagh  College,  129. 
Headlam,  Dr.  A.,  re  apostolic  suc- 
cession, 502. 
Hebrides,  New,  456  f. 
Hedley,    J.,    re    R.C.    missions    in 

Mongolia,  214  f. 
Hehe,  East  Africa,  346. 
Hellendoorn,  a  missionary  in  Celebes, 

263. 
Helps,  Sir  A.,  re  work  of  Las  Casas, 

401-3  ;  re  Franciscan  missionaries 

in  Mexico,  407- 


Hen£;chow,  190. 

Hepburn,  Dr.,  in  Japan,  225. 

Heracleon,  re  death  of  St.  Thomas, 

63. 
Herat,  Bishop  of,  274. 
Herbertsdale,  South  Africa,  326. 
Heriot,  Thomas,  in  Virginia,  368. 
Hideyoshi,    Japanese    general,    222, 

248. 
Hill,    Bishop   (of    the   Niger),    295, 

298. 
Hill,  Rev.  David,  of  China,  196. 
Hill,  Rev.  R.,  in  Sydney,  430  f. 
Hilo,  Hawaii,  447. 
Himabyas,  West,  Moravian  mission 

in,  55. 
Hine,  Bishop,  of  Nyasa,  36. 
Hispaniola  (Hayti),  399,  401. 
History,   Church,  Dr.    Mott  on   the 

need  to  study,  506. 
Hobson,  Dr.,  at  Macao,  35. 
Hokianga,  New  Zealand,  442. 
Holland,  Rev.  W.  E.  S.,  re  Calcutta 

University  students,  130. 
Holly,    Bishop    J.    T.,    of    Hayti, 

399. 
Holmes,  J.,   re   Moravian   missions, 

52. 
Holt,  Rev.  J.,  in  Barbados,  35,  396. 
Honan,  192. 
llongi    Hika,    New    Zealand    chief, 

442. 
Hong-Kong,  183-5,  189. 
Honolulu,  445  f. 
Honyman,  Rev.  S.,  of  Rhode  Islands, 

375. 
Hope,  Christian,  compared  with  that 

of  other  religions,  6. 
Hopkins,   Dr.   E.   W.,  re  Baghavad 

Gita,  61. 
Horden,    Bishop    J.,    of   Moosonee, 

384. 
Home,  Rev,  Silvester,  re  Malagasy 

Christians,  359. 
Horton,  Rev.  Azariah,  in  Long  Is- 
land, 486. 
Hsi,  Pastor,  196. 
Hsianfu  monument,  163,  165  f. 
Hsiucli'iian,     Hung,     instigator     of 

Taiping  revolt,  185. 
Hubbard,  Rev.  A.  R.,  of  Delhi,  92. 
Huekoff,  a   Moravian  missionary  in 

West  Africa,  54. 
Hudson  Bay,  384,  388. 
Hudson  Bay  Company,  384. 
Hugbes,  Rev.  T.  P.,  133. 
Huilla,  306. 
Hunan,  191,  195  f. 
Hupeh,  191, 


516 


INDEX 


HuttoD,  J.  E.,  re,  Moravian  missions, 

50flF. 
Hyderabad,  101,  124,  133,  139. 

Ibadan,  West  Africa,  294. 
leyasu,  a  Japanese  general,  222  f. 
Igorrotes  in  the  Philippines,  266. 
Ikebukuro,    theological    college    at, 

234. 
Ikkadu,  India,  132. 
Ilala,  319. 

Illinois  Indians,  368. 
Ilminsky,  Professor,  N.  I.,  276. 
Imad-ud-din,  Dr.,  133  ;  reconversion 

of  Indian  Moslems,  470. 
Irabert,  Bishop,  in  Corea,  249. 
Imerina,  Madagascar,  362. 
Incas  in  Peru,  417. 
India,    61-144  ;    census  returns    of, 

118-27  ;    missionary   societies    in, 

134  ;   number  of  missionaries  in, 

143  ;  number  of  students  in,  129  f.  ; 
medical  missions  in,  131-3  ;  mis- 
sionary education  in,  128-31  ;  sem- 
inaries in,  181  ;  female  education 
in,  131  ;  widows  in,  39  ;  leper 
hospitals  in,  144  ;  orphanages  in, 

144  ;  institutions  for  the  blind  in, 
144  ;  Anglican  bishops  in,  135. 

Indian  Home  Mission,  116. 

Indian  National  Missionary  Society, 

139. 
Indians,      American,      366-80 ;      in 

Alaska,  380  ;  Canadian,  382-7. 
Indians,  in  Australia,  438  ;  in  British 

Guiana,    424 ;    in    Fiji,    453  ;    in 

Trinidad,  398. 
Indo-China,  French,  258  f. 
Indore,  129,  132,  138. 
Industrial    missions,    27 ;    of    Basel 

Society,     101  f.  ;    in     Nyasaland, 

340  f. 
Inhambane,  East  Africa,   307,   315, 

322. 
Insein,  Burma,  131. 
Iramba,  East  Africa,  347. 
Iroquois,  translations  in  language  of, 

371. 
Ispahan,  273. 
Ivory  Coast,  290. 

Jablonski,  Dr.,  46. 

Jackson,  Dr.   A.  F.,  of  Manchuria, 

29. 
Jaffa,  271. 
Jaffna,     Ceylon,    139,     146  f.,     148; 

Francis  Xavier  at,  73. 
Jagdalpnr,  110. 
Jalut  Islands,  459, 


Jamaica,    391-3 ;   Moravian   mission 

in,    51,    55 ;    Baptist    Missionary 

Society  of,  406. 
James  of  Florence,  a  martyr  in  China, 

172. 
Jameson,  Fort,  341. 
Jammalamadugu,  India,  132. 
Janicke,  missionary  in  South  India, 

86. 
Jansen,  missionary  in  Sierra  Leone, 

287. 
Japan,  219-46;  moral  standards  in, 

242  ;  agnostics  in,  243  ;  the  Bible 

in,  244. 
Japanese,    in     Australia,     438 ;     in 

Canada,  388  ;  in  Hawaii,  446  ;  in 

New  Caledonia,    461;  in  U.S.A., 

381. 
Jashpur  State,  115 ;  R.C.  Christians 

in,  122. 
Java,    82,    259-61 ;   Dutch   missions 

in,    47 ;    converts  from   Islam  in, 

467. 
Jerusalem,  271  ;  Ignatius  Loyola  in^ 

69  ;  Jews  baptized  in,  476. 
Jerusalem    and    the    East   Mission, 

474. 
Jesselton,  Borneo,  262. 
Jesuit  Order,  491.    See  R.  C.  missions. 
Jews,  missions  to  the,  473-6  ;  their 

diffusion   throughout   the   Roman 

Empire,  15  ;  distribution  through- 
out the  world,  473  ;  Black  Jews  in 

Cochin,  473  ;  Beni- Israel  in  India, 

473  ;  Karaite  Jews  in  the  Crimea, 

473  ;  negro  Jews  in  Loango,  473 ; 

society  for,  founded  by  Loyola,  69  ; 

societies  working  amongst,  474. 
Jeypore,  32,  136. 
Jh'elum,  132. 
Jiaganj,  132. 
Jodhpur,  131. 
Johannesburg,  314,  331  f. 
John,  Dr.  Griffith,  194. 
John  of  Marignola  in  India,  %^. 
John   of  Monte   Corvino    in    South 

India,  65;  in  China,  170  f.,  175. 
John  of  Persia  at  Council  of  Nicsea, 

63. 
Johnson,  Archdeacon,   of  Zululand, 

313. 
Johnson,  Rev.  A.  D.,  of  Cawnpore, 

92. 
Johnson,     Bishop    James,    of    West 

Africa,  295,  298. 
Johnson,   Dr.  S.,   of  Now  England, 

375. 
Johnston,   Rev.  G.,  of  Charlestown, 

373. 


INDEX 


517 


Josa,    Archdeacon,    re     Chinese    in 

British  Guiana,  426. 
Jubbulpore,  110. 

Judson,  Adoniram,  of  Burma,  152  f. 
Julfa,  273. 
JuUundur,  90. 

Kabul,  274  f. 

Kachins,  Burma,  153. 

Kachwa,  India,  132. 

Kaeo,  New  Zealand,  442. 

Kaffraria,    311,   321,  324,   326,   332, 

482  ;  diocese  of  St.  John's,  312. 
Kagoshima,  220. 

Kagwa,  Sir  Apolo,  of  Uganda,  352. 
Kahia,  East  Africa,  342. 
Kaifeng,  192. 
Kajarnak,  first  Christian  convert  in 

Greenland,  51  f. 
Kalasapad,  99. 
Kalat  State,  274. 
Kaleraa,  son  of  Mtesa,  350. 
Kali  Yuga,  6. 
Kaliana,  Bishop  of,  65. 
Kalimpong,  117. 

Kambole,  Northern  Rhodesia,  341. 
Kamehameha,  King,  445  f. 
Kamiesbergen,  Namaqualand,  321. 
Kamtchatka,  276. 
Kanakas,  438,  458. 
Kandahar,  275. 
Kandy,  146-8. 
Kanghwa,  Corea,  254. 
Kang-kei,  Corea,  252. 
Kangshi,  Emperor  of  China,  177  f., 

180. 
Kansas,  Indians  in,  377. 
Kansu,  165,  192,  205. 
Kanye,  321. 

Karens,  Burma,  153,  155  f. 
Karjat-Karmala,  140. 
Karwar,  missionary  work  at,  68. 
Kasai  River,  303. 
Kashgar,  212. 
Kashmir,  93,  108. 
Kasur,  132. 
Katanga,  303. 
Kataska,  Mr.,  234. 
Katwa,  82. 
Kavirondo,  353. 
Kawimbe,  Rhodesia,  341. 
Keiskama  Hoek,  311  f. 
Keith-Falconer,  Ion,  271. 
Kemp,  Van  der,  316. 
Kenia  province,  342. 
Kennedy,    S.,    re     St.    Thomas    in 

India,  63. 
Kerman,  273. 
Kerr,  Dr.  J.  G.,  in  China,  195. 


Kervyn,  R.  P  L.,  r^R.C.  missionary 

methods  in  China,  21,  208. 
Khama,  chief,  321. 
Khammamett,  133. 
Khandwa,  110. 
Khartoum,  282. 
Khasia  tribes  in  Assam,  82. 
Khedgaon,  orphanage  at,  104. 
Kiangsu,  191,  195. 
Kiating,  191. 
Kidd,  Dudley,  re  education  in  South 

Africa,  25. 
Kikuyu,  342  f.  ;  conference  at,  504. 
Ivilima  Njaro,  346  f. 
Kiiiiberley  and  Kuruman,  diocese  of, 

314. 
Kini,',  Rev.  Copland,  of  New  Guinea, 

463. 
King,  Bishop  G.  L.,  of  Madagascar, 

36]. 
King,  Rev.  G.,  West  Australia,  432. 
Kingsbury,  Rev.  Cyrus,  377. 
Kinsolving,  Bishop    L.,    of    Brazil, 

412,  416. 
Kistna,  India,  123. 
Kiukiung,  191. 
Kinngani,  Zanzibar,  345. 
Knight,  Bishop,  of  Cuba,  400. 
Knight,  Bishop  A.  M.,  of  Rangnon, 

156. 
Knox,  John,  re  spread  of  Christian 

missions,  369. 
Kodoli,  132. 
Kohl,  J.  G.,   re  Jesuit  missionaries 

in  Canada,  383. 
Kohlhoff,    J.     C.     and    J.    B.    V., 

missionaries  in  South  India,  81. 
Kolar,  102,  133. 
Kolhapur,  132,  138. 
Kols,  India,  113,  118. 
Komyo,  Empress  of  Japan,  219. 
Konde,  East  Africa,  346. 
Koranna,  the,  325. 
Kota-Kota,  339. 
Kottayam,  95  ;   C.M.S.    college    at, 

129. 
Kourou  River  in  French  Guiana,  426. 
Koweyt,  Persian  Gulf,  272. 
Krapf,  Dr.,  342. 
Krishna,  characteristics  of,  61. 
Krishnagar,  Bengal,  116. 
Kuansa,  306. 
Kublai  Khan,   his   request  for   mis 

sionaries,  170-2. 
Kuching,  262  f. 
Kudat,  262. 
Kueilinfii,  190. 
Kugler,    Christian,     in     Abyssinia, 

357. 


518 


INDEX 


Kumasi,  292. 
Kumiai  Kyokwai,  230  f. 
Kuunankulam,  95. 
Kurdistan,  270. 
Kurnoo],  97,  123. 
Kurseong,  141. 

Kuruman,  Becliuanaland,  317,  321. 
Kusaie  Island,  459  f. 
Kuswogmiut  Indians,  380. 
Kwa  Magwaza,  313. 
Kwangsi,  205. 

Kwangsi  and  Hunan,  diocese  of,  190. 
Kwangtung,  195  f. 
Kweichow,  192,  195,  205. 
Kyoto,  220,  233  ;  Imperial  university 
at,  234. 

Labasa,  Fiji,  453. 

Labrador,  52,  387. 

Labuau,  261-3. 

Labuan  and  Sarawak,  diocese  of,  256. 

Ladrone  Islands,  458,  460. 

Ladysmith,  326. 

Lagos,  294  f. 

Lahore,    90,    93,    105-7  ;     Forman 

college  at,  129. 
Laingsburg,  326. 
Lambarene,  French  Congo,  306. 
Lambeth  Quadrilateral,  the,  501-3. 
Lambuth,  Bishop,  303. 
Laos,  258. 

Las  Casas,  401-4,  406. 
Lateward,  Rev.  H.,  in  Fiji,  453. 
Lavigerie,  Cardinal,  354. 
Lawes,   Rev.    W.    G.,   New  Guinea, 

463. 
Lawrence,     Emily,    in   Madagascar, 

361. 
Lawrence,  Sir  John,  93. 
Laws,    Dr.,    Livingstonia    Mission, 

339  f. 
Lazarists,  congregation  of,  491. 
Lebonibo,  diocese  of,  315. 
Leeward  Islands,  394  f.,  449. 
Lefroy,  Bishop  G.  A.,  of  Lahore  and 

Calcutta,  109. 
Legge,  Dr.  James,  194. 
Leh,  Tibet,  217. 
Leibnitz,    Baron  von,   his  advocacy 

of  foreign  missions,  45. 
Leigh,  Rev.  S.,  of  New  Zealand,  442. 
Leitch,  Dr.,  in  South  India,  36. 
Leper     asylums     in     Japan,     233  ; 

Madagascar,  362  ;  Zanzibar,  346. 
Lewis,    C,   re   Burmese   Buddhism, 

157. 
Lhasa,  217. 
Liberia,  289  f. 
Lifu  Island.  450,  462  f. 


Liggins,  Rev.  J.,  225. 
Likoma  Island,  3;i8f.,  345. 
Lima,  Brazil,  Jesuits  in,  414. 
Li])Scomb,    Bishop   C,    of  Jamaica, 

392. 
Livingstone,  Dr.  David,  317-20,  343. 
Livingstone,  Dr.,  of  China,  34. 
Livingstone,  Victoria  Kails,  341  f. 
Livingstonia  Mission,  339  f. 
Lloyd,  Rev.  A.,  219  f.  ;  re  teaching 

of  Amida  sects,  162  f. 
Loanda,  306,  318. 
Loango,  negro  Jews  in,  473. 
Lobengula,  321. 

Lockhart,  Dr.,  in  China,  35,  182. 
Lofthouse,  Archdeacon,  388. 
Long  Cay,  West  Indies,  394. 
Longford,  S.  H.,  re  Corean  civiliza- 
tion, 247. 
Lopez,  Gregory.     See  Alu. 
Lotus  S'c7'ipture,  The,  161, 
Loudon,  Nyasaland,  340. 
Louron^o  Marques,  315,  338. 
Lovedale,  324  f.,  337. 
Loyalty  Islands,  450. 
Loyola,  Ignatius,  in  Jerusalem,  68  f., 

467. 
Lualaba  River,  303. 
Lucknow,  93,    111,    132 ;  Memorial 

Hospital  at,  37  ;  diocese  of,  110  ; 

A.M.E.C.  College  at,  129. 
Ludhiana,   90,  133,  140;   School  of 

Medicine  at,  30. 
Lugard,  Sir  F.,  in  Uganda,  350. 
Lull,  Raymond,  19,  285 f.,  466  f. 
Lnlua  River,  303. 
Lushai  Hills,  Assam,  117. 
Luther,    re    uselessness    of    foreign 

missions,  42. 
Lutheran  missions  in  India,  92,  121, 

124,  136  f. 
Ltitkens,  Dr.,  Danish  Court  chaplain, 

47. 
Luzon  Island,  264,  267. 
Lyons  Missionary  Society,  489  f. 
Lytton,  Indian  school  at,  57,  385. 

Mabondo,  303. 

Mabotsa,  318. 

Macao,  209. 

Macarius,  Russian  Orthodox  mission- 

ary,  276. 
Macdonald,  D.  B.,  re  Sufi  mysticism, 

468. 
Macedonia,  270. 
Mackay,  Alexander,  348  f. 
Mackay,  J.,  of  Delhi,  92. 
Mackenzie,     Bishop    Charles,     313, 

343  f. 


INDEX 


519 


Mackenzie     Memorial      ^Mission     to 

Zululand,  313. 
Mackenzie  River  district,  388. 
Mackinaw,  368. 
Maclaren,     Rev.    A.    A.,     of    New 

Guinea,  463. 
Macquarie,  Governor,  430. 
Macsparran,    Rev.   Dr.    J.,  of  Nara- 

gansett,  375. 
Madagascar,  358-64. 
Madras,   96  ;   number   of  Christians 

in  Presidency  of,   120 f.  ;  C.M.S. 

College  in,  129. 
Madras,  Bishop  of  (Dr.  Whitehead), 

re  missions    in   Punjab,    106  ;    re 

Christian  reunion  and  the  episco- 
pate, 502  f. 
Madura,     90,      131  f.  ;      Robert     di 

Nobili  at,  75. 
Macjdalena    River,   South    America, 

429. 
Magdalene     Asylum     founded     by 

Loyola,  69. 
Magomero,  343. 
Mahagi,  West  Africa,  304. 
Mahaica  Creek,  British  Guiana,  425. 
Mai  Island,  New  Hebrides,  454. 
Maigrot,  Vicar  of  Fukieu,  178. 
Maistre,  Father,  in  Corea,  249. 
Mala  Island,  458. 
Malabar,  101  f. 

Malacca,  256  f.  ;  college  at,  182. 
Malagasy  Bible,  363. 
Malaita  Island,  457. 
Malay  peninsula,  256  f. 
Malay,  translation  of  the  Bible  into, 

56. 
Malays     in     Capetown,      311  ;      in 

Australia,  438. 
Malaysia,  Moslems  in,  465. 
Malek,  River  Nile,  283,  304. 
Malekula  Island,  457. 
Malua  Island,  451. 
Manaar,  Ceylon,  145. 
Manargudi,  Wesleyan  College  at,  129. 
Manawatu  district,  443. 
Manchuria,  212  f. 
Mandalay,  151,  155  f. 
Mandeviile,  Sir  J.,  re  tomb  of  St. 

Thomas,  66. 
Mangungu,  New  Zealand,  442. 
Manichean  temples  in  China,  163  n. 
Manichees  in  China,  162  f.,  168. 
Manila,  264. 

Manteo,  American  Indian,  368. 
Manu,    teaching    of,    in    regard    to 

women,  40. 
Maoris,  missions  to,  440-4, 
Mapanza,  Rhodesia,  341. 


Maples,  Bishop,  of  Nyasaland,  339. 

Mapoon  Mission,  432,  435. 

Mar  Dionysius,  66. 

Mar  Elia  iv.,  Nestorian  Patriarch, 
66. 

Mar  Tiraotheus,  67. 

Mar  Titus  Thomas,  67. 

Marchini's  map  of  missions,  180  f. 

Marco  Polo.     See  Polo. 

Marianne  Islands,  458,  462. 

Mariolatry  in  South  America,  412. 

Maritzburg,  313. 

Marks,  Dr.  J.  E.,  154  f. 

Marquesas  Islands,  447,  449,  462. 

Marquette,  Pere,  368. 

Marsden,  Rev.  Samuel,  430,  440, 
448. 

Marshall  Islands,  458  f.,  462. 

Marshman,  missionary  at  Serampore, 
81. 

Martin,  Dr.  W.  A.  P.,  in  China, 
195. 

Martyn,  Rev.  Henry,  84,  273,  467. 

Marval,  Dr.  Alice,  of  Cawnpore,  29, 
111. 

Masai  country,  349. 

Mascoutin  Indians,  368. 

Maseru,  314. 

Mashonaland,  326,  329  f.,  332  f.; 
diocese  of,  315. 

Masih,  Rev.  Abdul,  84,  112. 

Masiza,  Canon,  312. 

Massachusetts,  Charter  of,  369. 

Masulipatam,  79,  98,  129,  133. 

Matabele,  320,  332  f. 

Matacos,  Argentine,  422. 

Matara,  146. 

Mateer,  C.  W.,  195. 

Mather,  Bishop,  re  character  of  West 
Indian  negroes,  394. 

Maubant,  P.,  in  Corea,  249. 

Maulmein,  Burma,  152,  156. 

Mauritius,  359,  364  f. 

Maxwell,  Dr.  James,  in  China,  35. 

Mayhew,  missionary  to  Indians,  370. 

Mbereshi,  Rhodesia,  341. 

M'Clatchie,  Rev.  T.,  183. 

M 'Donald,  Archdeacon,  385,  388. 

McDongall,  Bishop  F.  T.,  of  Singa- 
pore and  Sarawak,  36,  262. 

M'Intyre,  Mr,,  of  Manchuria,  250. 

M'Kidd,  missionary  in  the  Trans- 
vaal, 329. 

M'Leod,  Sir  Donald,  93. 

McMahon,  Archdeacon,  re  Malagasy 
Christians,  361-4. 

M 'Mullen,  Rev.  R.  M.,  of  Cawnpore, 
92. 

Medak,  India,  132. 


520 


INDEX 


Medes,  earlj  missions  to,  164. 

Medhurst,  \V.  H.,  re  work  of  Candida 
in  China,  176. 

Medical  missions,  28-38. 

Medical  missionaries,  aims  of,  28. 

Melanesia,  453-58. 

Melanesian  Mission,  454-6. 

Memberton,  Chief,  382. 

Mendoza,  Christoval  de,  in  Paraguay, 
419. 

Menendez  in  Florida,  366. 

Menentillus  in  South  India,  &Q. 

Menominees  of  Wisconsin,  368. 

Mermet,  M.,  in  Japan,  225. 

Meru,  East  Africa,  346. 

Mestizos  in  Central  America,  405, 
419. 

Methodist  missions.  See  under 
Societies. 

Methods  of  missionary  work,  8-41. 

Metlakahtla,  381,  385. 

Mexico,  New,  Indians  in,  366,  379. 

Miamis,  Indians,  377. 

Michigan,  Indians  in,  377. 

Micronesia,  458-64. 

MiJdleton,  Bishop,  of  Calcutta,  85. 

Mienchu,  189. 

Milan,  Edict  of,  22. 

Milan,  Society  for  Foreign  Missions 
of,  152. 

Milapur,  tomb  of  St.  Thomas  at, 
63,  76  ;  cross  discovered  at,  65. 

Mill,  Rev.  W.  H.,  at  Calcutta,  85. 

Mill  Hill  missionary  college,  354. 

Miller,  Dr.  W.,  in  Nigeria,  37,  299. 

Miln,  Rev.  J.,  minister  to  Indians, 
371. 

Milne,  Rev.  Dr.  R.,  in  China,  182, 
256. 

Milton,  John,  and  Jamaica  expedi- 
tion, 392. 

Mindano  Island,  264  f. 

Miiidon,  King,  151,  155. 

Minnesota,  Indians  in,  368. 

Miraj,  India,  132. 

Missionaries,  number  of,  494. 

Missionary  societies,  477-92.  See 
Societies. 

Mitchell  River  Mission,  432-6. 

Mityana,  Uganda,  353. 

Moa  Island,  433. 

Modderpoort,  314. 

Motfat,  Robert,  317. 

Mohammed,  the  spirit  by  which  he 
was  inspired,  472. 

Mohammedans,  early  missionaries 
to,  68  ;  missions  to,  465-72  ;  dis- 
tribution of,  in  the  world,  465  ; 
political  inlluence  of,  469  ;    work 


amonc^st,  in  India,  77,  133  f.  ;  in 
Uganda,  350  ;  in  Nyasaland,  340  ; 
in  Madagascar,  363  ;  in  Mauritius, 
365  ;  in  Sumatra,  260  ;  in  Russia, 
276  ;  in  Dutch  East  Indies,  119. 

Mohawk  Institution,  57. 

Mohawks,  371. 

Mohican  language.  New  Testament 
in,  370. 

Molokai  Island,  446. 

Molopolole,  South  Africa,  321. 

Molucca  Islands,  82,  264. 

Mombasa,  342,  353. 

Mongolia,  214-6. 

Monroy,  Gaspard  de,  in  Paraguay, 
420. 

Montana,  Indians  in,  379. 

Montessori,  Dr.,  re  methods  of 
educating  children,  24  f. 

Montezuma,  ruler  of  Mexico,  406. 

Montgomery,  Bishop  H.,  in  Mela- 
nesia, 455. 

Montgomery,  Sir  Robert,  93. 

Montserrat  Island,  394. 

Moose  Fort,  384. 

Moosonee,  Indians  in,  384. 

Moradabad,  132. 

Morales,  a  Dominican  missionary, 
178. 

Moravian  missions,  49-55.  See 
Societies. 

Morgenter,  Mashonaland,  330. 

Mormons,  in  New  Zealand,  443 ;  in 
Pacific,  446,  449,  452. 

Morocco,  286  f. 

Moros,  Philippines,  266. 

Morrison,  Rev.  Robert,  in  China, 
181-3,  185. 

Mosega,  South  Africa,  310. 

Moskito  Shore,  405. 

Moslem.     See  Mohammedan. 

Mossel  Bay,  326. 

Mosul,  270. 

Mota  Island,  454. 

Motito,  South  Africa,  322. 

Mott,  Dr.  J.,  in  China,  201,  203  f.  ; 
re  co-operation  in  missionary  work, 
499  ;  re  need  to  study  Church 
history,  506. 

Moukden,  212  f. 

Moule,  Rev.  A.  C,  163n.,  168  n., 
173,  175  n.  ;  re  failure  of  Nestorian 
and  Franciscan  missions  in  China, 
173. 

Moule,  Bishop  George  E.,  of  Mid- 
China,  190. 

Mozambique  province,  346. 

Mozumdar,  Anando  Chunder,  89. 

Mpolokoso,  Northern  Rhodesia,  341, 


INDEX 


521 


Mtesa,  King  of  Uganda,  247  f. 

Miiller,  Max,  re  work  of  Bisliop 
Patteson,  455. 

Multan,  93,  105. 

Murata,  Wakasa,  244  f. 

Murhu,  Chota  Nagpur,  131. 

Muruts,  Borneo,  2(32. 

Muscat,  272. 

Mutiny,  Indian,  92-4. 

Mutyalapad,  99. 

Mwanga,  King  of  Uganda,  348-51. 

Mweru,  Lake,  303. 

Myera,  Soutli  Africa,  330. 

Myladi,  Ringeltaube  at,  83. 

Mylne,  Bishop,  of  Bombay,  re  St. 
Paul's  missionary  methods,  11-3  ; 
re  work  of  Carey,  83. 

Mysore,  102,  120,  126,  132;  Govern- 
ment educational  policy  in,  102. 

Nablous,  271. 

Nabunaga,  Oda,  of  Japan,  34,  222. 

Nadia,  Bengal,  115  f. 

Nagari,  India,  132. 

Nagasaki,  222,  224  f.,  227,  245. 

Nagercoil,  129,  132. 

Nagoka,  Dr.,  re  Christian  missions 

in  Japan,  226. 
Nagpur,  110,  129,  131. 
Nairobi,  342. 
Namaqualand,  325,  333. 
Namaquas,  316  f. 
Namasudras  in  Bengal,  115. 
Nanchang,  191. 
Nandyal,  99. 
Nanking,  185  f.,  195, 197  ;  university 

at,  202. 
Naragansett,  New  England,  375. 
Nasik,  132. 
Nasirabad,  131. 
Nassau,  394. 

Natal,  326,  331  f.  ;  diocese  of,  312. 
Natick,  baptisn)  of  Indians  at,  370. 
Navajo  Indians,  880. 
Navarin  Inland,  424. 
Nazareth,  Palestine,  271. 
Nazareth,  Tinnevelly,  94,  131. 
Neale,  Dr.,  re  activities  of  Nestorian 

missionaries,  64. 
Neau,  Elias,  371. 
Neemuch,  132. 

Neesima,  Dr.  Joseph,  231,  233. 
Nogapatam,  139. 
Negri  Sembilan,  256. 
Negritos,  264. 
Nellore,  India,  97,  123. 
Nestorian    missions    in    China,    64, 

164-9 ;     monument    at    Hsianfu, 

165  f. 


Nestorius,  164. 

Neve,  Drs.  A.  and  E.,  in  Kashmir, 

108. 
Nevis  Island,  394. 
Nevius,  Dr.  J.  L.,  195. 
New  Britain  Island,  453,  461. 
New    Brunswick,    Indians    in,    56, 

386. 
New  Caledonia,  461  f. 
New  England,  Indians  and  negroes 

in,  374. 
New  England  Company,  56  f.,  385. 
New  Georgia  Island,  458. 
New  Granada,  427. 
New  Guinea  (Papua),  310,  462-4. 
New  Guinea,  Dutch,  259,  464. 
New  Guinea,  German,  464. 
New     Hebrides,     454,     456,     462 ; 

French,  457. 
New  Hermannsburg,  South  Australia, 

433. 
New  Jersey,  Indians  and  negroes  in, 

371,  375. 
New  Lauenburg,  461. 
New  Mecklenburg,  461. 
New  Norcia  Mission,  West  Australia, 

432,  437. 
New  Pomerania,  461  f. 
New  Providence,  West  Indies,  394. 
New  South   Wales  Aborigines'  Mis- 
sion, 438. 
New  York  State,  missions  in,  371  f. 
New  Zealand,  440-4. 
Neyoor,  South  India,  36,  132. 
Niam-Niams,  304. 
Nias  Island,  259. 
Nicaragua,   406  ;   Moravian  mission 

in,  55. 
Nicolai,  Archbishop,  in  Japan,  236  f., 

244. 
Nicolo  de  Conti,  re  Nestorian  Chris- 
tians in  India,  68. 
Niger,  the,  Mission,  296-9. 
Nigeria,  279. 

Nihon  Kirisuto  Kyokwai,  230  f. 
Ningpo,  183,  185,  189. 
Ni])iion     Methodist     Sei    Kyokwai, 

230  f. 
Nijtpon  Sei  Kokwai,  230. 
Nitschmann,    David,     a    Moravian 

missionary,  50. 
Nine  Island,  449  f.,  462. 
Nixon,  Bishop,  of  Tasmania,  439. 
Nizamabad,  132. 
Nobili,  Robert  di,  75-7. 
Noble,  R.  T.,  at  Masulipatam,  98. 
Norfolk  Island,  454-6. 
Norman,  Rev.  H.  V.,  a  martyr  in 

China,  190. 


522 


INDEX 


Norris,  Bishop  F.  L,,  of  North  China, 
190  ;  re  Taiping  revolt,  186. 

Nova  Scotia,  Indians  in,  287,  386. 

Nukapu  Island,  454  f. 

Nukulaelae  Island,  459. 

Niikunono  Island,  453. 

Nundy,  Gopinath,  89. 

Nyasaland,  329f.,  338-40,  344. 

Ny lander,  missionary  in  Sierra  Leone, 
287. 

Obusi,  West  Africa,  298. 

Ocean  Island,  459. 

Odoric,  Friar,  in  Tibet,  217. 

Ogowe  River,  West  Africa,  305. 

Ohio,  Indians  in,  377. 

Ojibbeway  Indians,  385. 

Oklahoma,  Indians  in,  377,  379. 

Okiuna,  Count  Shigeuobu,  re  Chris- 
tian influence  in  Japan,  241. 

Oluwole,  Bishop,  in  West  Africa, 
295,  298. 

Ondonga,  South  Africa,  331. 

Oneidas  Indians,  372. 

Ongole,  97,  129. 

Onitsha,  River  Niger,  296,  298. 

Ontario,  Indians  in,  377,  386. 

Opa  Island,  New  Hebrides,  456. 

Opium,  abolition  of  importation  into 
China,  206  n. 

Orange  Free  State,  313,  334. 

Oraons,  North  India,  115. 

Orders,  R.C.  religious,  491. 

Orealla,  British  Guiana,  425. 

Orientalsin  U.S.A.,  381  ;  in  Canada, 
388. 

Orissa,  Christians  in,  115  n.,  122. 

Ortega,  Manuel  de,  in  Paraguay,  419. 

Orthodox  (Russian)  Missionary 
Society,  276. 

Osages  Indians,  377. 

Ottawas  Indians,  367,  377. 

Outlook,  the  missionary,  493-8. 

Ovamboland,  331. 

Owen,  Rev.  F.,  in  Natal,  310. 

Oxford  University  Mission  to  Cal- 
cutta, 116,  130. 

Paama  Island,  457. 

Pacific   Coast,  Spanish   missions   on 

the,  367. 
Pacific,  Isles  of  the,  445-64. 
Paihia,  New  Zealand,  441. 
Paillalef,  Ambrosio,  Mapuche  chief, 

418. 
Pakoi,  189. 
Palacio,  General,    re  Christianity  in 

Mexico,  417. 
Palamcottah,  86,  94. 


Palestine,  268,  271. 
Palnias,  Cape,  290. 

Pampas,  the,  420. 

Panama,  406. 

Pankor,  256. 

Pantsenus,  63. 

Pao,  missionary  in  Lifu  Island,  450. 

Paoning,  189. 

Papua  (New  Guinea),  462-4. 

Paraguay,  409,  419-22. 

Paramaribo,  427. 

Paramartha,  a  Buddhist  missionary, 
161. 

Parana,  415,  422. 

Paravas,  Xavier's  work  amongst, 
71  f. 

Pare-gebirge,  East  Africa,  346. 

Parker,  Bishop  H.,  of  Uganda,  350. 

Parker,  Dr.  Peter,  in  China,  35,  194. 

Parshad,  Ghokal,  93. 

Parthia,  St.  Thomas'  missionary 
work  in,  65. 

Paterson,  Dr.  David,  in  Madras,  37. 

Patna,  132  ;  hospital  at,  37  ;  uni- 
versity of,  130. 

Paton,  Rev.  J.  G.,  re  results  of  work 
in  the  New  Hebrides,  457. 

Patteson,  Bishop  C,  of  Melanesia, 
454  f. 

Paul,  St.,  his  missionary  methods, 
10-12. 

Paul,  a  Chinese  mandarin,  176. 

Paumotu  Islands,  447,  449. 

Pawnees,  Indians,  377. 

Peck,  Rev.  Edmund,  missionary 
to  Eskimos,  387  f. 

Pegu,  151. 

Peking,  190,  193-5  ;  a  Nestorian 
metropolitical  see,  165  ;  University 
College  in,  202  ;  Union  Medical 
College  in,  30. 

Pelison,  Pere,  re  Jesuit  missions  in 
China,  178. 

Pel  la,  South  Africa,  333. 

Pelliot,  P.,  163,  168  n. 

Pemba  Island,  345  f. 

Penang,  256  f. 

Penhalonga,  315. 

Penna,  F.  della,  in  Tibet,  217. 

Pennell,  Dr.,  of  Bannu,  37,  274. 

Pennsylvania,  Indians  and  negroes 
in,  371,  374. 

Perak,  256  f. 

Perry,  Bishop,  of  Melbourne,  432. 

Persia,  268,  270,  272  f.,  469  ;  early 
missions  in,  164  ;  Nestorian  bishop- 
ries in,  165  ;  Jewish  converts  in, 
476. 

Peru,  409,  416-8. 


INDEX 


523 


re    missions   to 


in  Persia,   133, 


Peshawar,  3,  105,  108,  129. 

Peter,  an  early  couveit  in  India,  79. 

Petrus   Veneraljilis, 

Moslems,  466. 
Pfander,  Dr.  C.  G. 

273. 
Phalera,  104. 
Philippine  Islands,  264-7  ;  Moslems 

in,  466. 
Phillips,  Bishop  C,  of  West  Africa, 

295. 
Phokoane,  South  Africa,  314. 
Phyong  An,  253. 
Piet  Retief,  313. 
Pilgi-im  Fathers,  369. 
Pilkington,  G.  L.,  of  Uganda,  351. 
Pinetown,  Natal,  333. 
Pingyin,  190. 

Pistis  Sophia,  a  Gnostic  Gospel,  162. 
Pizarro,  Francisco,  416,  419. 
Plague  in  China,  the,  29. 
Pliitschau,  Henry,  47f. 
Pocahontas  of  Virginia,  369. 
Point  Hope,  Alaska,  381. 
Political  methods  of  evangelization, 

18-22. 
Polo,  Marco,  re  Christians  in  South 

India,  65. 
Polynesia,  445-53  ;  French,  449. 
Pomare,  King  of  Tahiti,  448. 
Ponape  Island,  460. 
Pondicherry,  141. 
Poona,  104,  131  f. 
Poonindie,  Australian  aborigines  at, 

431. 
Popo,  Little,  Togoland,  293. 
Porro,  a  martyr  in  Japan,  223. 
Port  of  Spain,  398. 
Port  Moresby,  New  Guinea,  463. 
Port-Villa,  New  Hebrides,  457. 
Portal,  Sir  Gerald,  in  Uganda,  350, 

354. 
Porto  Novo,  Togoland,  293. 
Porto  Rico,  400,  410  f. 
Potaro  River,  New  Guiana,  425. 
Pottawatomie  Indians,  377. 
Powhatan,  Indian  chief,  369. 
Presbyterians,  number  of,  in  India, 

121,  124. 
Prescott,    W.    H.,    re    character   of 

Cortes,  406  f. 
Pretoria,  diocese  of,  314. 
Price,  Nathan,  of  Harvard  College. 
405.  ^  ' 

Protestantsche  Kerk  in  Dutch  East 

Indies,  259-61. 
Province  Wellesley,  256  f. 
Punjab,  missions  in,   91,  93,  104-9; 
Christians  in,  120. 


Purser,  Rev.  W.  C,  re  R.C.  missions 

in  Burma,  152. 
Putumayo  Indians,  418. 
Pyengyang,  253. 

Quaque,  Rev.  P.,  Gold  Coast,  291. 
Quebec,  Indians  at,  382,  386. 
Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  386. 
Queensland,  North,  missions  to  abor- 
igines in,  432-6. 
Quepe,  Chili,  419. 
Quetta,  131,  273  f.,  419. 
Quilimane,  East  Africa,  318. 
Quincy,  Rev.  S.,  in  Georgia,  374. 

Radama,  King,  358. 

Ragbir,  Rev.  C,  in  Trinidad,  398. 

Rainsford,  Rev.  G.,  of  Chowan,  373. 

Raipur,  110. 

Rajputana,  110,  137. 

Raleigh,  Sir  Walter,  368. 

Ram,  Sita,  of  Cawnpore,  111. 

Rama,  Nicaragua,  405. 

Ramabai,  Pandita,  104. 

Ramahyuk,  Australian  aborigines  at, 

432.  ^ 

Ramakrishna  Home  of  Service,  140. 
Ramayana,    influence     of    Christian 

teaching  on,  62  ;  edited  by  Carey, 

82. 
Ramnad,  India,  131. 
Ramsay,  Archibald,    in  Travancore. 

36. 
Ranavalona,  Queen,  358  f. 
Ranchi,  Chota  Nagpur,  112. 
Rand    at    Johannesburg,    314,    328, 

332. 
Rangihona,  New  Zealand,  440. 
Rangoon,  152-4,  156. 
Raratonga  Island,  449,  462  f. 
Ratnapura,  Ceylon,  146. 
Ranch,    a    Moravian    missionary    in 

New  York  State,  54. 
Rawal  Pindi,  131. 
Rebmann,  Rev.   J.,  in   East  Africa 

342. 
Red  River  Colony,  384. 
Redonda  Island,  394. 
Reef  Islands,  456. 
Regions  beyond  Missionary  Union  in 

Peru,  418. 
Reid  Christian  College  in  Lucknow 

111. 
Rene,  Father,  383. 
Resurrection,  Community  of  the,  in 

the  Transvaal,  315. 
Reunion  in  the  mission   field,  499- 

506. 


524 


INDEX 


Rhenius,  Rev.  C.  T.,  in  Tinnevelly, 

86  f. 
Rhodes,  Bernard,  in  China,  34. 
Rhodesia,  Northern, 341  f. ;  Southern, 

322,  331. 
Rhymdyk,  missionary  in  Timor,  47. 
Ricards,   Bishop,    in    Cape    Colony, 

333. 
Ricci,  Matteo,  in  China,  176-9. 
Richard,    Dr.    Timothy,    re   Chinese 

Buddhism,  163  n.,  196  f. 
Richter,    Dr.,    re    R.C.   missionaries 

in  India,  75  ;  re  missions  at  Pesha- 
war, 105. 
Ridley,  Bishop,  of  Caledonia,  386. 
Riley,    Bishop    H.    A.,    of    Mexico, 

408. 
Rimitsu,    a   Nestorian   physician    in 

Japan,  219, 
Ringeltaube,  Rev.  W.  T.,  in  Tra van- 
core,  83  f.,  86. 
Rio  de  Janeiro,  416. 
Rio  de  Oro,  286. 
Rio  Grande  do  Sul,  416. 
Rio  Muni,  300. 
Rio  Pongo  Mission,  286. 
Riuzan,  Yano,  in  Japan,  226. 
Riversdale,  South  Africa,  326. 
Roanoke,  Virginia,  368. 
Robben  Island,  328. 
Robert  Noble  College,  Masulipatam, 

89,  270. 
Robertson,  Rev.  R.,  Zululand,  313. 
Robinson,    Rev.    C,    a    martyr    in 

China,  190. 
Robinson,  John,  pastor  to  the  Pilgrim 

Fathers,  369. 
Robinson,  Rev.  John  Alfred,  on  the 

River  Niger,  298. 
Rogers,  Michael,  in  China,  176. 
Romo-Syrians  in  South  India,  66  f., 

121  f. 
Roorkee,  North  India,  111. 
Roper  River  Mission,  432,  435  f. 
Rorke's  Drift,  313. 
Rosario,  Nicolau  do,  308. 
Ross,  Rev.  J.,  of  Moukden,  250. 
Rovuma,  East  Africa,  344  f. 
Rowe,  Bishop,  of  Alaska,  381. 
Roxbury,  near  Boston,  369  f. 
Roy,  Ram  Mohan,  88. 
Royal  Society  of  Prussia,  foundation 

of,  45  f. 
Royapuram,  132. 
Rua  Sura  Island,  458. 
Rudra,  Principal,  at  Delhi,  109. 
Rupertsland,  Indians  in,  384. 
Rupununi,  British  Guiana,  425. 
Rusape,  Mashoualand,  315. 


Russell,    Bishop    W.    A.,  of  North 

China,  183. 
Russian  Orthodox  Missions,  in  China, 

211  f.;   in  Japan,  236  f.,    254;   in 

Central    Asia  275  f.  ;    in   Alaska, 

380. 
Ryan,  Bishop,  of  Mauritius,  364. 

Sabatha,  India,  132. 

Sagar,  India,  110. 

Sahara  Desert,  its  influence  upon 
human  history,  277  f. 

Saharanpur,  140. 

St.  Croix  Island,  West  Indies,  51, 
390. 

St.  Jan  Island,  391. 

St.  Kitts  Island,  391,  394. 

St.  Lucia  Island,  398. 

St.  Salvador  Island,  393. 

St.  Thomas  Island,  50  f.,  391. 

St.  Vincent,  389,  398. 

Sakalava,  Madagascar,  361-3. 

Saker,  Alfred,  a  missionary  in  the 
Cameroons,  300. 

Sala,  Father,  in  French  Guiana,  426. 

Salem,  India,  140. 

Salisbury,  Mashonaland,  315. 

Salt,  Syria,  271. 

Salvado,  Bishop  Rudesindus,  437. 

Samarcand,  Nestorian  bishoprics  in, 
165. 

Snnoa,  451,  462. 

San  Cristoval  Island,  457  f. 

Sau  Diego,  California,  367. 

San  Domingo  Island,  391,  399,  402. 

San  Francisco,  Russian  cathedral  in, 
380. 

San  Pedro  de  Jujuy,  Argentina,  423. 

San  Salvador,  West  Africa,  301,  306  ; 
Bishop  of,  302. 

Sandakan,  262. 

Sandwich  Islands,  445-7,  462. 

Sangir  Islands,  264. 

Santa  Cruz  Islands,  454-6. 

Santalia,  137. 

Sautals,  work  amongst,  116,  118, 
131. 

Santee  Sioux  Indians,  376. 

Santo  Island,  457. 

Sao  Paulo,  416  ;  Bishop  of,  re  religion 
in  Brazil,  415. 

Saramaccas,  Dutch  Guiana,  427. 

Saravia,  Adrianus,  re  duty  of  evan- 
gelizing the  world,  43. 

Sarawak,  Borneo,  261,  263. 

Sargent,  Bishop  E.,  94. 

Saskatcliewan,  Indians  in,  385  f. 

Satthianadan,  missionary  in  Tinne- 
velly, 86. 


INDEX 


525 


Sault,  Ste.  Marie,  Canada,  368,  383. 

Savage  Island,  449. 

Sawube,  Rev.  — ,  in  Japan,  237. 

Sawu  Island,  264. 

Scandinavian     Independent    Baptist 

Union  in  South  Africa,  331. 
Schall,  Adam,  missionary  in  China, 

177. 
Schereschewsky,  Bishop,   in   China, 

191  f. 
Scheuer,  Rev.  A. ,  re  Basel  industrial 

missions,  136  f. 
Schmidt,  George,   in   South  Africa, 

54  f.,  309. 
Schiin,  Dr.,  on  river  Niger,  296. 
Sclireuder,  Hans,  in  Zululand,  331. 
Schumann,    T.    S.,    Apostle    to   the 

Arawaks,  427. 
Schwartz,    C.    F.,    49,    79-81  ;    his 

methods  of  work,  13  f. 
Schweitzer,    Dr.     Albert,    in    West 

Africa,  306. 
Scott,  Bishop  C.  P.,  of  North  China, 

180. 
Scottish  Mission  Industries,  104. 
Scottish  Society  for  the  Propagation 

of  Christian  Knowledge,  370. 
Scruggs,  W.  L.,  re  R.C.  Church  in 

Colombia,  427  f. 
Scudder,  Dr.  J.,  in  India,  37,  96. 
Sechele,  Chief,  318. 
Sechuana  Bible,  317. 
Seeker,  Archbishop,  re  early  work  of 

theS.P.G.,  59. 
Sedijiram,  263. 
Sekondi,  292. 
Selangor,  256  f. 
Seleucia,  Council  of,  274. 
Selkirk,  385. 

Selwyu,  Bishop  George,  of  New  Zea- 
land, 441,  454  ;   his  description  of 

New  Zealand  savages,  5. 
Selwyn,  Bishop  John,  of  Melanesia, 

455. 
Senegal  River,  286. 
Senegambia,  286. 
Seoul,  Corea,  249,  252-5. 
Serampore,  81-3,  131. 
Sergius,  Bishop,  in  Japan,  237. 
Serowe,  South  Africa,  321. 
Settee,    Rev.    J.,    Canadian    Indian, 

384. 
Seva  Sadan,  "  Sisters  of  India,"  140. 
Severance  hospital  at  Seoul,  30,  253, 

255. 
Seychelles  Islands,  364. 
Sliang  Ti,  use  of,  in  China.  177-9. 
Shanghai.  185,  191,  193,  197. 
Shans,  Burma,  153. 


Shansi,   192,    194  f.  ;    university   in, 

202. 
Shantung,  195  f. ;  Christian  university 

in,  202;  diocese  ofi  190. 
Shaohing,  189. 
Sharon,  South  Africa,  325. 
Sharrocks,  Dr.  A.  M.,  re  Presbyterian 

missions  in  Corea,  251  f. 
Shaw,    Rev.    B.,    in    South    Africa, 

321. 
Shaw,  Rev.  R.,  in  British  Honduras, 

405  f. 
Shears,  Rev.  A.,  154. 
Shekomeko,    missionary    station    in 

New  York  State,  54. 
Shembagamur,  India,  141. 
Shen,  use  of,  in  China,  179. 
Shensi,  192,  195,  206. 
Sherbro,  West  Africa,  289. 
Sherman,     Father,     rt    religion     in 

Porto  Rico,  410. 
Shillong,  Assam,  117. 
Shiloh,  South  Africa,  328. 
Shimabara,  Japan,  223. 
Shintoism,  238  f. 
Shiraz,  84,  273. 
Shir^  district,  338-40. 
Sholinghur,  132. 
Short,  Bishop,  of  Adelaide,  431. 
Shoshong,  South  Africa,  321,  326. 
Shuck,  Rev.  Jehu,  in  China,  183. 
Shupanga,  South  Africa,  333. 
Si  Lidung,  260. 
Sialkot,  92,  123,  129,  132. 
Siam,  257  f.  ;  Nestorian  bishoprics  in, 

165  ;  Chinese  in,  183. 
Siangtan,  190. 

Siberia,  275  f.  ;  Moslems  from,  467. 
Sibi,  Baluchistan,  274. 
Sidotti,  Father,  in  Japan,  224. 
Sierra  Leone,  287-9. 
Sighelm    sent    to     India    by    King 

Alfred,  65. 
Silinda,  Mount,  in  Rhodesia,  328. 
Silveira,  Gonzalo  da,  307. 
Sindh,  missions  in,  104. 
Singanfu.     See  Hsianfu. 
Singapore,  256. 
Singh,  Rev.  David,  113. 
Singkawang,  Dutch  Borneo,  263. 
Sioux  Indians,  376. 
Sisters  of  India  Society,  140. 
Six  nations  of  the  Indians,  59. 
Skeena  River,  386. 
Skelton,  Rev.  T.,  109. 
Smirnoff,    E.,  re  Russian   missions. 

275  n.,  276. 
Smith,  Captain,  of  Virginia,  369. 
Smith,  Dr.  F.  Porter,  in  China,  35. 


526 


INDEX 


Smith,    Bishop  G.,    of  Hong-Kong, 

183,  185. 
Smith,    Stanley,    in   China,    177 n., 

192. 
Smith,  Rev.  Dr.  W.,  in  Pennsylvania, 

374. 
Smyth,  Bishop,  of  Lebomlio,  36,  315. 
Smythies,  Bishop,  of  Zanzibar,  344. 

Societies : — 
British  Empire — 
Africa,  Inland  Mission,  304,  342. 
Africa,  North,  Mission,  282,  285, 

480. 
Africa,    South,    General  Mission, 

332. 
Africa,  Sottfh,  Reformed  Ministers' 

Union,  338. 
Africa,  South,  Baptist  Missionary 

Society,  332. 
Africa,  South,  Presbyterian  Church 

of  332. 
Australian    Presbyterian   Church, 

in  Corea,  253. 
Baptist  Convention  of  Ontario,  in 

Bolivia,  419. 
Baptist    Industrial     Mission,     at 

Blantyre,  341. 
Baptist  Missionary  Society  {B.  M.  S. ), 

478  ;  in  India,  82,  109,  111,  116, 

135  f.  ;  in  Ceylon,  146  ;  in  China, 

196  f.  ;  in  West  Africa,  300,  306  ; 

in  West  Indies,  391,  393,  399. 
Baptist  Zenana  Mission,  136. 
Baptists,  English  Gcneral,\n  China, 

185  ;  Canadian  in  India,  100. 
Bible  Societies,  in  India,   140  ;   in 

China,   197  ;  in  Japan,  214  ;  in 

Manchuria,   212 ;    in  Mongolia, 

215. 
Brethren,  Plymouth,  in  Mongolia, 

216  ;  in   West  Africa,  203  ;   in 

South  America,  419,  429. 
Canada,     Anglican     Church     in, 

mission  to  China,  192  ;  to  Japan, 

230 ;    Methodist   Church   of,    in 

Japan,  231. 
Canadian    Pentecostal    Movement, 

in  Mongolia,  216. 
Canadian  Presbyterian  Missions,  in 

India,  132,  138 ;  in  China,  197  ; 

in  Formosa,  246  ;  in  Corea,  253. 
Cape  General  Mission,  332. 
China    Inland    Mission   (C.I.M.), 

187  f.,  189,  192  f.,  212,  217. 
Church         Mission  an/         Society 

(C.M.S.),  478  ;  in  India,  90,  93- 

5,  97-9,  104-6,  110,  112.  J 15  f, 

120,    129,    133-5  J    in    Ceylon, 


146  f.  ;  in  China,  183,  189  f.  ;  in 
Japan,  227,  230  ;  in  Turkish 
Empire,  270  f.  ;  in  Persia,  273  ; 
in  Egypt,  281  f.,  467  :  in  West 
Africa,  287  f.,  296-9  ;  in  Natal, 
310  ;  in  East  Africa,  342,  347- 
56 ;  in  Mauritius,  364  ;  in 
Canada,  381,  385-8  ;  in  West 
Indies,  392  f.  ;  in  South  America, 
425  ;  in  Australia,  431  ;  in  New 
Zealand,  440-3. 

Church  of  England  Zenana  Mission- 
ary Society  (C.E.Z.M.S.),  in 
India,  110,  131,  133-5. 

Congo  Inland  Mission,  303. 

Edinburgh  Medical  Missionary 
Society,  111,  483. 

Edinburgh  Missionary  Society,  482. 

Evangelical  Union  of  South 
America,  418,  423. 

Friends'  Foreign  Missionary  Asso- 
ciation, 480;  in  India,  110;  in 
Ceylon,  148  ;  in  Pemba,  345  ;  in 
Madagascar,  362. 

Glasgow  Missionary  Society,  482. 

Jev:s,  London  Society  for  Promoting 
Christianity  amongst,  474-6  ; 
British  Society  for  the  Propaga- 
tion of  the  Gof<pel  among,  474  ; 
Barbican  Mission  to,  474  ;  Ea.st 
London  Fund  fur,  474  ;  Mildmay 
Mission  to  the,  474. 

Lepers,  Mission  to,  in  India  and 
the  East,  483. 

London  Missionary  Society 
(L.M.S.),  478  f.  ;  in  India,  88, 
95,  97,  102,  112,  116,  129,  132, 
139  ;  in  China,  181  f.,  193  f.  ;  in 
Corea,  250  ;  in  Mongolia,  215  f.  ; 
in  South  Africa,  316-21  ;  in 
Madagascar,  358-64  ;  in  Maur- 
itius, 365  ;  in  British  Guiana, 
424  f.  ;  in  Australia,  431  ;  in 
Polynesia,  448-51,  453  ;  in 
Melanesia,  456,  459 ;  in  New 
Guinea,  463. 

Presbyterian  Church  of  England 
Missions,  480 ;  in  China,  183, 
195  ;  in  Formosa,  246 ;  in 
Singapore,  257. 

Presbyterian  Church  of  Ireland 
Missions,  480  ;  in  India,  132  ;  in 
China,  197  ;  in  Manchuria,  212  ; 
in  Mongolia,  216. 

Primitive  Methodist  Missionary 
Society,  480 ;  in  West  Africa, 
300  ;  in  Northern  Pihodesia,  342. 

Stilralion  Army,  in  Indin,  107, 
120,  131,  139  ;  in  Ceylon,  H8  ; 


INDEX 


527 


in  Corea,  251  ;  in  Java,  261  ;  in 

South  Afiica,   232;   in  Canada, 
387. 

Scotland,  Church  of ,  482  ;  in  India, 
116  f.,  129,  137;  in  China,  187; 
in  Tibet,  217  ;  in  East  Africa, 
339-42. 

Scotland,  Episcopal  Church  o/",  483; 
in  India,  110  ;  in  Kafrraria,  312. 

Scotland,  United  Free  Church  of, 
482  f.  ;  in  India,  96,  104,  110, 
116  f.,  129,  131,  133,  137;  in 
China,  187  ;  in  Manchuria,  212  ; 
in  Palestine,  271  ;  in  Arabia, 
272 ;  in  West  Africa,  299  ;  in 
East  Africa,  338-42;  in  West 
Indies,  391  ;  in  Melanesia,  457. 

Society  for  Promoting  Christian 
Knowledge  (S.P.C.K.),  68,  83. 

Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts  (S.  P.  G. ), 
58-60,  477  f.  ;  in  India,  80,  86, 
94,  99,  104,  109-11,  113-18,  129, 
131,  133-5  ;  in  Ceylon,  147  ;  in 
Burma,  154-9  ;  in  China,  187, 
189  f.  ;  in  Japan,  228,  230  ;  in 
Corea,  254  ;  in  Malaysia,  257  ;  in 
Borneo,  261  f.  ;  in  West  Africa, 
290-2  ;  in  South  Africa,  311-5  ; 
in  East  Africa,  338  ;  in  Mada- 
gascar, 360-4  ;  in  Mauritius, 
364  ;  in  North  America,  371-5  ; 
in  West  Indies,  391-400; 
in  Central  America,  404-6 ; 
in  South  America,  425  f.  ;  in 
Australia,  430,  432-6,  438  ;  in 
Polynesia,  446,  451,  453;  in 
Melanesia,  455. 

South  American  Missionary  Society 
(S.A.M.S.),  418,  420-4. 

Student  Vohmteer  Missionary 
Union  (S.V.M.U.),  205,  481. 

Sudan  Pioneer  Mission,  282. 

Sudan  United  Mission,  282,  299, 
480. 

United  Methodist  Missionary 
Society,  480. 

Universities'  Mission  to  Central 
Africa,  319,  338,  343-6. 

Welsh  Calvinistic  Methodists,  480  ; 
in  Assam,  117,  124. 

Wesley  an  Methodist  Missionary 
Society  (WM.S.),  429  ;  in  India, 
101  f.,  112,  116,  129, 132, 138  f.  ; 
in  Ceylon,  146  ;  in  Burma,  154  ; 
in  Cliina,  187  ;  in  West  Afiica, 
287,  292  f.,  296  ;  in  South  Africa, 
321  f.  ;  in  East  Africa,  338  f.  ;  in 
West  Indies,  391-8  ;  in  Central 


America,  404,  406 ;  in  South 
America,  425  ;  in  Polynesia, 
450-3. 

Wesleyans,  Australian,  in  South 
Sea  Islands,  458,  461  ;  in  New 
Guinea,  464. 

Young  Men's  Christian  Association 
(Y.M.C.A.),  in  India,  143;  in 
Burma,  154  ;  in  China,  197  ;  in 
Corea,  254. 

Zenana  Bible  and  Medical  Mission 
(Z.B.M.),  in  India,  112,  132. 
American — 

Adventists,  in  Rhodesia,  342. 

Baptist         Missionary  Union 

(A.B.M.U.),  483  f.  ;  in  India, 
91,  97,  101,  117,  129,  131  f., 
136;  in  Burma,  152-4;  in 
China,  183  ;  in  the  Philippines, 
267  ;  in  West  Africa,  303. 

Baptist  Home  Missionary  Society, 
378. 

Bible  Society,  381. 

Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions  (A. B.C. P.M.), 
483  f.  ;  in  India,  91,  95,  104, 
131  f.,  139  ;  in  Ceylon,  146;  in 
China,  188,  194  ;  in  Japan,  230  ; 
in  Turkish  Empire,  269 ;  in 
Persia,  273  ;  in  West  Africa, 
306  ;  in  South  Africa,  327  f.  ; 
in  East  Africa,  338  ;  in  North 
America,  377  f.  ;  in  Central 
America,  408  ;  in  the  Pacific, 
445  f.,  459  f. 

Central  American  Mission,  404, 
406. 

Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance, 
487  ;  in  China,  197  ;  in  Tibet, 
217  ;  in  South  America,  423. 

Foreign  Christian  Missionary 
Society,  in  China,  202. 

Friends^  Board  of  Foreign  Missions, 
487  ;  in  East  Africa,  342. 

General  Missionary  Board  of  the 
Church  of  the  Brethren,  487. 

Lutherans,  in  India,  100. 

Methodist  Episcopial  Church 
(A.M. E.G.),  484  f.  ;  in  India,  94, 
97,  101  f.,  104,  106-8,  110-12, 
124,  131-3,  138  f.  ;  in  Kurma, 
154  ;  in  China,  184  ;  in  Japan, 
231  ;  in  Corea,  253 ;  in  Singa- 
pore, 257  ;  in  Sumatra,  260;  in 
Borneo,  261,  263  ;  in  the  Philip- 
pines, 267  ;  in  West  Africa,  290, 
304,  306  ;  in  South  Africa,  322  ; 
in  East  Africa,  338,  342  ;  in 
North  America,  379. 


528 


INDEX 


Societies,  American  (cont.)— 

Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South, 
485  ;  in  China,  184  ;  in  Japan, 
231  ;  in  Corea,  253  ;  in  West 
Africa,  303  ;  in  North  America, 
379. 
Methodists,  Free,  in  South  Africa, 

338. 
Nortoegian  Lutheran   Mission,  in 

Madagascar,  362. 
Presbyterian     Chicrch,     486  ;     in 
India,   91,    111  f.,    120,    131  f., 
138  ;  in  China,  184,  188,  195  ; 
in  Japan,    225,  230  ;  in   Corea, 
251-3  ;  in  Siam,  258  ;  in  Syria, 
270  ;  in  West  Africa,  290,   300, 
305  ;    in   North   America,    377, 
380  f.  ;  in  Central  America,  405, 
408  ;    in   South   America,    416, 
418,  429. 
Presbyterian  Church,  South,   486  ; 
in  China,   197  ;  in  Corea,  253  ; 
in  West  Africa,   303  ;  in  South 
America,  416. 
Presbyterian  Church,  United,  468  ; 
in     India,     91,    106,    131  ;    in 
North  Africa,  282,  468. 
Protestant       Episcopal       Church, 
485  f.  ;    in    China,    191  f.  ;    in 
Japan,  225,  230  ;  in  the  Philip- 
pines, 266  ;  in  Liberia,  290  ;  in 
North    America,    376,    379-81  ; 
in  West  Indies,  399  f.  ;  in  South 
America,    416  ;    in  the  Pacific, 
446  f. 
Reformed  Dutch   Church,  486  ;  in 
India,  96,  131  ;  in  China,  184  ; 
in     Japan,      225-7,      230  ;     in 
Arabia,  272  ;  in  Rhodesia,  341  ; 
in  North  America,  378. 
Southern  Bajitist  Convention,  484  ; 
in   China,    183,   197  ;    in   West 
Africa,  296  ;  in  South  America, 
416. 
United  Brethren,  487,  289. 
United  Foreign  Missionary  Society, 

486. 
Women's        Union       Missionary 
Society,  111. 
French — 

Paris  Evangelical  Mission  Society, 
488  f.  ;  in  West  Africa,  305  ;  in 
Rhodesia,  341  ;  in  Madagascar, 
362  f.  ;  in  Polynesia,  447, 
449. 
German — 
Berlin  Missionary  Society,  487  ; 
in  China,  197  ;  in  South  Africa, 
325  ;  in  East  Africa,  346. 


BieU field  Mission,  in  East  Afri^  i, 

346. 
Evangelical      Synod      of     North 

America,  110. 
Qossner  Mission,   489  ;   in    India, 

136  ;  in  the  Cameroons,  300. 
Hanoverian  Free  Church  Mission, 

in  South  Africa,  327. 
Hermannsburg    Mission,     487-9 ; 

in  South  Africa,  326. 
Leipzig  Missionary  Society,  482-9  ; 
its  attitude   towards   caste,  88, 
92,  95  f.  ;  in  East  Africa,  346. 
Methodists,  German,  in  Togoland, 

293. 
Moravian    Missions,    49-55,    217, 
309,    328  ;    in    Tibet,    110  ;    in 
East     Africa,     346  ;     in    North 
America,    375,    381  ;    in    South 
America,  391,  393-9,  42i,  427. 
Neuendettelsau    Society,    in    Aus- 
tralia, 433. 
Neukirchcn    Mission   Institute,    in 
Java,  261  ;  in  East  Africa,  342. 
North  German  {Bremen)  Mission, 

in  West  Africa,  293. 
Rhenish      Mission,      487-9  ;       in 
China,    184  ;     in    Dutch    East 
Indies,      259-61,      263  f.  ;      in 
German     South  -  West     Africa, 
307  ;  in  South  Africa,  325. 
Schleswig  -  Holstein       Evangelical 
Lutheran  Mission,  136. 
Netherlands — 
Dutch  Preformed  Church,  in  Dutch 

East  Indies,  259,  264. 
Dutch  Slate  Church,  259,  264. 
Netherlands    Missionary    Society, 

489,  259,  263  f. 
Societe     Beige    de    Missions    Pro- 

testantes  au  Congo,  303. 
Utrecht  Association,  in  Dutch  East 

Indies,  259. 
Utrecht  TJnion,  489. 
Roman  Catholic  Missions,  489-92  ; 
in  India,  66-78,  114  f.,  118, 
121-3,  141  f.  ;  in  Ceylon,  148  ; 
in  China,  21,  170-84,  208-11  ; 
in  Manchuria,  213;  in  Japan, 
220-4,  235  f.  ;  in  Formosa,  246; 
in  Corea,  248  f.,  251;  in  Mon- 
golia, 214  f.  ;  in  Tibet,  217  f.  ; 
in  Malay  States,  257  ;  in 
Borneo,  263  ;  in  the  Philippines, 
265  f.  ;  in  North  Africa,  282-6  ; 
in  West  Africa,  289  f.,  293, 
296,  299,  305-7  ;  in  South 
Africa,  332-4  ;  in  East  Africa, 
338,   343,    346  f.,    350,   354-7  ; 


INDEX 


529 


in  Madagascar,  362  ;  in  Mauri- 
tius, 365  ;  in  North  America, 
377,  379  ;  in  Canada,  382-4  ; 
in  West  Indies,  389,  397-400  ; 
in  Central  America,  401-8  ;  in 
South  America,  409-29  ;  in 
Australia,  437  f.  ;  in  New- 
Zealand,  444 ;  in  Polynesia, 
446  f,,  449,  451-3;  Melanesia, 
457-62  ;  in  New  Guinea,  464. 
Russia — 

Orthodox  Missions,  276  ;  in  China, 
211  f.;     in   Japan,  236  f.,    254; 
in     Central     Asia,     275  f.  ;     in 
Alaska,  380. 
Scandinavia — 

Church  of  Norway  Mission,  in 
South  Africa,  331. 

Danish  Evangelical  Lutheran  Mis- 
sionary Society,  489  ;  in  India, 
137  ;  in  Manchuria,  212. 

Finnish  Missionary  Society,  489  ; 
in  German  South -West  Africa, 
307  ;  in  South  Africa,  331. 

Norwegian  Misfiionary  Society,  in 
South  Africa,  331. 

Scandinavian  Missionary  Alli- 
ance, in  Japan,  232  ;  in  Mon- 
golia, 216;  in  Tibet,  217;  in 
South  Africa,  331  ;  in  East 
Africa,  342. 

Sweden,  Church  of,  489,  331. 

Swedish  Evangelical  National  Mis- 
sionary Society,  489,  136,  356, 
357. 

Sicedish  Fatherland  Institution, 
110. 

Swedish  Holiness  Union,  in  South 
Africa,  331. 

Swedish  Missionary  Covenant, 
487. 

Swedish  Missionary  Society,  489 ; 
in  China,  197,  212;  in  Mon- 
golia, 216  ;  in  West  Africa,  306. 

Swedish  Missionary  Union,  489. 
Switzerland — 

Basel  Missionary  Society,  488  f.  ; 
in  India,  92,  101,  132,  136  f., 
142  ;  in  China,  197  ;  in  Borneo, 
261  ;  in  West  Africa,  292  f.,  300. 

Mission  Romande,  338,  489. 
Society  Islands,  447. 
Society  of  the  Servants  of  India,  140. 
►Sociological  results  oC  missions,  496  f. 
Sofala,  West  Africa,  307. 
Solano,  St.  Francis,  in  Peru,  417. 
Solomon  Islands,  456.  462. 
Somaliland,    Italian,    356 ;    British, 

356. 

34 


Song  Do,  Corea,  254. 

Soochow,  191. 

South  Africa,  307-38. 

South  African  Mission  Society,  325. 

South  African  Society  for  Promoting 

the  Extension  of  Christ's  Kingdom, 

316,  329. 
South  America,  409-29  ;  population 

of  its  States,  409. 
South  India  United  Church,  142. 
South  Sea  Evangelical  Mission,  458. 
South    Sea    Islanders    in   Australia, 

438. 
Southev,    Robert,    re    condition    of 

Brazil,  414. 
Spaniard   Harbour,  South   America, 

423. 
Speer,  Dr.  R.  E.,  quotations  by,  415, 

417. 
Spener,  re  missionary  obligation,  45. 
Spokanes,  Indians,  378. 
Squire,  E.  B.,  in  China,  183. 
Srinagar,  93,   108  ;   medical  mission 

at,  32. 
Stach,      Moravian     missionary     to 

Greenland,  51. 
Stanford,     Rev.     W.,     in     Central 

America,  405. 
Stanley,  H.,  on  the  Congo,  302,  319  ; 

in  Uganda,  347  f. 
Stann     Creek,     British     Honduras, 

406. 
Statistics,  recent  missionary,  493  f. 
Steere,  Bishop,  of  Zanzibar,  344. 
Steinkop,  325. 
Stellenbosch,  325. 
Stern,  Dr.,  in  Abyssinia,  357. 
Stevenson,    R.    L.,   in   Samoa,   451; 

re  character  of  J.  Chalmers,  463. 
Stewart,  Dr.  James,  of  Lovedale,  27, 

324. 
Stewart,  John,  Apostle  to  the  Wyan- 

dottes,  378. 
Stirling,  Bishop,  of  Falkland  Islands, 

423. 
Stock,   Dr.   Eugene,  re  missions  in 

Sierra  Leone,  288  ;  re  number  of 

Jewdsh  converts,  473. 
Strachan,  Bishop,  of  Rangoon,  36  f., 

156. 
Straits  Settlements,  256  f. 
Stratford,  New  England,  375. 
Stringer,  Bishop,  of  the  Yukon,  388. 
Studd,  C.  T.,  192. 
Student  Volunteer  Movement.     See 

Societies. 
Study  of  missions,  need  of,  495  t. 
Sudan,  Egyptian,  282  f. 
Sufi  mysticism,  468. 


530 


INDEX 


Sumatra,      259  f.  ;      converts     from 

Islam  in,  467. 
Sumba  Island,  259,  264. 
Sunda  Islands,  264. 
Surinam.     See  Guiana. 
Susi,  Livingstone's  servant,  319. 
Suva,  Fiji,  453. 
Suwon,  254. 
Swain,    Miss,    first  woman    medical 

missionary,  41. 
Swatow,  195. 
Swaziland,  313,  317,  332. 
Sykes,  T.,  in  South  Rhodesia,  320. 
Sylhet,  Assam,  117. 
Syria,  missions  in,  270  f. 
Syrian    Christians   in   South    India, 

"66-8,  95  f.,  121,  124. 
Syro-Chaldeans  in  South  India,  67. 
Szechwan,  180,  189,  192,  209. 

Tahiti,  447,  462. 

Tai  Tsung,  a  Chinese  emperor,  166. 

Taianfu,  190. 

Taichow,  189. 

Tainan,  Formosa,  195. 

Tai  ping  revolt,  185  f. 

Talaings,  in  Burma,  154. 

Talaut  Islands,  264. 

Taljhari,  Bengal,  116. 

Tamatave,  Madagascar,  360,  363. 

Tamils,  in  Burma,  154,  156  ;  in 
Ceylon,  149  ;  in  Singapore,  257. 

Tananarive,  Madagascar,  361. 

Tanganyika,  Lake,"  339,  341,  347. 

Tanjore,  Schwartz  at,  80  f. 

Tanket,  China,  Nestorian  bishoprics 
in,  165. 

Tanna  Island,  Melanesia,  457. 

Taochow,  217. 

Tarn  Taran,  131. 

Tartary,  209,  275. 

Tasmania,  438  f. 

Tatsienlu,  217. 

Taufaahan,  King  of  Tonga,  450. 

Taylor,  Dr.  J.  Hudson,  35,  187, 
192  f. 

Taylor,  General  Reynell,  93. 

Taylor,  Bishop  W.,  in  West  Africa, 
304. 

Teheran,  Jews  baptized  in,  476. 

Tekenika,  South  America,  423. 

Telugu  country.  96-101. 

Teso  country,  353. 

Tete,  East  Africa,  308. 

Teton  Sioux  Indians,  380. 

Tetsujiro,  Professor  Inoue,  re  Chris- 
tianity and  patriotism,  242  f. 

Texas,  Indians  in,  367. 

Tezpur,  Assam,  117. 


Thaba  Bosiu,  322  f. 

Thaba  Nchu,  313,  322. 

Theal,    Dr.,   re    Jesuit    missions  in 

East  Africa,  308. 
Theatins,  mission  of  the,  69. 
Theophilus  the  Indian,  64, 
Thibault.  Father,  in  Canada,  383. 
ThibaAv,  King,  155. 
Thlotse  Heights,  314. 
Thoburn,  Bishop,  94. 
Thomas,  a  bishop  from  Edessa,  64. 
Thomas,  Dr.  John,  in  India,  84. 
Thomas,  Rev.  R.  J.,  in  Corea,  250. 
Thomas,     Rev.     S.,    missionary    to 

Indians,  372. 
Thomas,  St.,  in  India,  63-6,  68;  in 

China,  164. 
Thompson,    Rev.    Thomas,   on    the 

Gold  Coast,  290  f.,  375. 
Thomson,  Rev.  W.  F.  R.,   in   Kaf- 

fraria,  324. 
Thornton,  Rev.  D.,  in  Egypt,  281. 
Threlkeld,  L.  E.,  in  Australia,  431. 
Tiberias,  medical  mission  at,  271. 
Tibet,  216-8. 

Tien,  use  of,  in  China,  177  f. 
Tien  Chu,  178. 
Tientsin,  194  ;  college  at,  27. 
Tierra  del  Fuego,  423  f. 
Tiger  Kloof,  South  Africa,  317,  321. 
Tilbe,    Dr.,  re  Burmese    Buddhism, 

157. 
Timbuctoo,  286. 
Timur,  274. 
Tinkowski,  re  persecution  of  Chinese 

Christians,  209. 
Tinnevelly,  missions  in,  86  ;  Indian 

Missionary  Society  of,  100. 
Titicaca,  Lake,  Bolivia,  419. 
Toba,  Lake,  Sumatra,  260. 
Tobago  Island,  391,  398. 
Tobas,  Argentina,  422. 
Togoland,  293. 
Tokelau  Islands,  453. 
Tokonami,  Mr.,  re  religion  in  Japan, 

239  f. 
Tokyo,  Imperial  university  in,  243  ; 

Jesuit  college  in,  236. 
Tokyo,    South,    Bishop   in,    re   self- 
support  in  Japan,  234. 
Tollygunge,  Bengal,  85. 
Tomlin,    Rev.    C.,    re    missions    to 

Australian  aborigines,  434,  437. 
Tonga  Islands,  450  f.,  461. 
Tongaland,  313,  332. 
Tongatabu  Island,  448. 
Tongoa  Island,  457. 
Tonking,  missions  in,  180,  211. 
Toro,  kingdom  of,  353. 


INDEX 


531 


Torres,  Abbot,  437  f. 

Toungoo,  Burma,  155  f. 

Tournoii,  papal  delegate,  to  India, 
76  ;  to  China,  178. 

Townsend,  Rev.  H.,  294. 

Tranquebar,  Ziegenbalg  at,  48  ; 
Schwartz  at,  79  f.  ;  Lutheran 
mission  at,  131. 

Transvaal,  314  f.,  326.  329  f. 

Trappists  in  Natal,  333. 

Travancore,  65,  83,  86  ;  burning  of 
Metropolitan  of,  74;  L.M.S.  mis- 
sions in,  123  ;  primary  education 
in,  123  ;  number  of  Christians  in, 
120  f. 

Trew,  Rev.  J.,  in  Burma,  155. 

Trichinopoly,  Schwartz  at,  79  f.  ; 
college  at,  89,  96,  129. 

Trichur,  95. 

Trigault,  Nicholas,  re,  St.  Thomas's 
visit  to  China,  164  ;  re  Nestorian 
Christians  in  China,  175  n. 

Trincomalee,  Ceylon,  148. 

Trinidad  Island,  391,  398. 

Tripoli,  285,  469. 

Trivandrum,  133. 

Trubanaman,  Queensland,  432. 

Truchsees,  Count,  44. 

Tsiou,  a  Chinese  missionary  in  Corea, 
248. 

Tucker,  Bishop,  of  Uganda,  351-8. 

Tugwell,  Bishop,  in  West  Africa, 
295,  297  f. 

Tukudh  Indians,  385. 

Tulsi  Das,  influence  of  Christian 
teaching  on,  62. 

Tunhuang,  China,  163. 

Tunis,  284  f.  ;  R.  Lull  in,  466. 

Turakina,  New  Zealand,  443. 

Turkestan,  275  ;  Chinese,  192,  212. 

Turkish  Empire,  missions  in,  269  f. 

Turk's  Islands,  391,  394. 

Turner,  Bishop,  of  Corea,  254. 

Tutuila  Island,  451. 

Tuzulutlan,  Central  America,  402  f. 

Udaipur,  131. 

Uganda,  347-56. 

Ugogo,  342,  346. 

Ukaguru,  342. 

Ulu  Island,  461. 

Umpumulo,  Zululand,  331. 

Umtali,  Old,  322. 

Umtata,  Kaffraria,  312. 

Unangu,  East  Africa,  338. 

Underwood,    Rev.  H.   G.,  in  Corea, 

252. 
Union  Islands,  453. 
Unitarian  Mis>ion  in  Japan,  232. 


United  Provinces,  India,  110-2,  120. 
Unity,  movements  towards.   499  ;  in 

India,  142. 
Universities,  Indian,  90. 
University  colleges,  in  India,  128-30  ; 

in  China,  201-3. 
University,    proposed    Christian,    in 

Japan,  234  ;  in  Cairo,  468. 
Unyamwezi,  346. 
Unyamyembe,  347. 
Urban  ii.  and  the  Crusades,  471. 
Urban  v.  sends  a  mission  to  China, 

172. 
Urdaneta,  Friar,  in  the  Philijipines, 

265. 
Urmston,  Rev.  J.,  in  North  Carolina, 

374. 
Uruguay,  409,  422. 
Urumchi,  Turkestan,  212. 
Usagara,  346. 
Usambara,  344  f. 
Usaramo,  346. 
Usher,    Rev.    J.,    in   New   England, 

374. 
Ushuwaia,  South  America,  423. 
Utrecht,  Zululand,  313. 

Valdivia,  in  Chili,  419. 

Valentine,  Dr.,  at  Jeypore,  32. 

Van  Riebeek,    309  ;   his   method   of 

teaching  slaves,  19. 
Vancouver  Island,  Indians  in,  384. 
Vasco  da  Gama,  his  visit  to  India. 

68. 
Vaughan,     Cardinal,   re  religion    in 

New  Granada,  410. 
Veddahs,  work  amongst  the,  146. 
Venezuela,  409,  427-9. 
Vengurla,  India,  132. 
Veniaminoff,  Archbishop  John,  276, 

380. 
Venkayya,   Pagolu,  a  Telugu  Chris- 
tian, 98. 
Ventimiglia,  Father,  in  Borneo,  263. 
Verapoly,  141. 
Verbeck,  Dr.  G.  F.,  in  Japan,  225, 

227. 
Victoria,  Mashonaland,  315. 
Vidal,  Bishop,  of  Sierra  Leone,  287. 
Villa  Rica,  Brazil,  415. 
Villegaignon,  Nicholas  Durand  de,  in 

Brazil,  44,  415. 
Virgin  Islands,  390,  394. 
Virginia,  368  ;  college  for  Indians  in, 

57. 
Vizagapatam,  97,  136. 
Vohiniare,  Madagascar,  360. 
Volkner,  Rev.  C.  S.,  in  New  Zealand, 

441. 


532 


INDEX 


Vos,  Rev.  M.  C,  Cape  Colony,  316. 
Vryburg,  321. 
Vryheid,  313. 

Waiapu,  diocese  of,  443. 

Waimate,  industrial  mission  at,  440. 

Walfisch  Bay,  331. 

Walpole  Island,  Lake  Superior,  383. 

Wanganui  River,  New  Zealand,  444. 

Wantage  Sisterhood  in  Poona,  104. 

War,  European,  its  efFect  upon 
missions,  498. 

Ward,  A.,  re  Mapoon  Mission,  435. 

Ward,  James,  at  Mapoon,  Queens- 
land, 435. 

Ward,  missionary  at  Serampore,  81. 

Wardha,  India,  131. 

Warneck,  Dr.,  re  Dutch  missions, 
46  ;  re  Danish-Halle  missions,  49  ; 
re  Christians  in  Sierra  Leone,  288. 

Warren,  George,  in  Sierra  Leone, 
287. 

Warren,  Rev.  T.,  in  Central  America, 
405. 

Washington  State,  Indians  in,  379. 

Wayika,  West  Africa,  303. 

Weeks,  Bishop,  of  Sierra  Leone,  288. 

Weihsien,  190,  196. 

Weipa,  Australian  aborigines  at, 
435. 

Weithaga,  East  Africa,  342. 

Wellington,  New  Zealand,  443  f. 

Wellington,  South  Africa,  322. 

Wellington  Bay,  N.S.W.,  aborigines 
at,  431. 

Weltz,  Baron  Justinian  von,  a  mis- 
sionar}^  in  Dutch  Guiana,  45. 

Wesley,  Rev.  John,  as  an  S.P.G. 
missionary  in  Georgia,  374. 

Wesleyan  Conference,  Australian,  its 
work  in  New  Zealand,  442. 

West,  Rev.  S.,  in  Canada,  384,  386. 

West  China  Union  University,  20  n. 

West  Indies,  389-400. 

Westcott,  Bishop  Foss,  of  Chota 
Nagpur,  110. 

Westcott,  Bishop  George,  of  Luck- 
now,  110. 

Westermann,  Professor  D.,  re  dis- 
tribution of  Mohammedan  peoples, 
465. 

Wherry,  Rev.  Dr.,  re  missions  to 
Moslems  in  India,  469  f. 

Whipple,  Bishop,  of  Minnesota,  376. 

Whitehead,    Bishop,    of  Madras,    re 
Christian  reunion  and  the  episco- 
pate, 502  f 
Whitehead,  Rev.  G.,  re  a  Christian 
hermit  in  Burma,  153  f. 


Whiteley,  Rev.  J.,  of  New  Zealand, 

442. 
Whitley,    Bishop   S.    C,   of  Chota 

Nagpur,  114. 
Widdicombe,  Canon,  re  missions  in 

Basutoland,  314. 
William,  King  Frederick,  his  letter 

to  Bunsen,  184. 
Williams,  Bishop  C.  M.,  in  Japan, 

225. 
Williams,  Dr.  Daniel,  57. 
Williams,  Rev.  H.,  in  New  Zealand, 

440. 
Williams,  Rev.  John,  in  South  Sea 

Islands,  449,  451  f. 
Williams,    Bishop   W.,  of  Waiapu, 

New  Zealand,  440. 
Willis,  Bishop,  of  Honolulu,  451. 
Willis,    Bishop,  of  Uganda,  351  f.  ; 

re  moral  outlook  in  Uganda,  355. 
Wilson,    Bishop,    of    Calcutta,    87, 

104. 
Wilson,     C,     missionary    in     New 

Zealand,  440. 
Wilson  College,  Bombay,  89. 
Windward  Islands,  398. 
Winnebagos  Indians,  368. 
Wiunimera  district,  Victoria,  432. 
Winnipeg,  Chinese  in,  388. 
Winter,  Rev.  R.,  in  Delhi,  109. 
Winter,  Mrs.,  37. 
Wisconsin,  Indians  in,  372,  379. 
Wittenberg,  a  document   issued   by 

faculty  of,  44. 
Wolfe,  Rev.  J.  R.,  in  China,  190. 
Wolferstan,    Father,     re    Christians 

in  Mongolia,  214. 
Wolff,  Dr.  Joseph,  in  Persia,  273. 
Women,  colleges  for,  in  India,  128  ; 
Hindu    testimony    in    regard    to 
status  of,  39  f. 
Women,    work   of,    in    the   mission 
field,  38-41  ;  National  Indian  As- 
sociation, U.S.A.,  378. 
Won  San,  Corea,  454. 
Wonneroo,  Australian  aborigines  at, 

432. 
Wood,  Rev.  J.  B.,  of  Lagos,  295. 
Worcester,  South  Africa,  325. 
Wreningham,  Mashonaland,  315. 
Wrioht,  Rev.   W.,  in  South  Africa, 

310. 
Wuchang,  191,  196. 
Wuchow,  196. 
Wuhu,  191. 

Wupperthal,  South  Africa,  325. 
Wuras,    a  missionary  in   Kaffraria, 

326. 
Wusih,  191. 


INDEX 


533 


Wyandottes,  Indians,  377  f. 
Wynberg,  310. 


Xavier,  St.  Francis,  in  India,  13, 
69-74  ;  in  China,  175  ;  in  Japan, 
220  f. 

Xavier,  Geronimo,  in  North  India, 
77,  133. 


Yammonsee  Indians,  372  ;  prince  of, 
baptized  in  London,  373. 

Yangchovv,  191. 

Yao  tribes,  339. 

Yarkand,  212. 

Yarrabah,  mission  to  aborigines  at, 
432-4. 

Yedo,  Japan,  225. 

Yenchowfu,  190. 

Yente,  Yang,  a  Chinese  traveller, 
163  n. 

Yezd,  Persia,  hospital  at,  273. 

Yorubaland,  294-6. 

Young,  Bishop,  in  Cuba,  40t>. 

Young  Men's  Christian  Association 
in  India,  143  ;  in  Japan,  232  ;  in 
Corea,  254. 

Young  Women's  Christian  Associa- 
tion in  Japan,  233. 


Ysabel  Island,  458. 

Yuan  Shihkai,   President   of  China, 

198,  201. 
Yukon  territory,  Indians  in,  385  f. 
Yungchen,  Chinese  Emperor,  180. 
Yungehow,  190. 
Yiinnan,  192,  195,  258. 


Zaitun,  China,  172. 

Zambesi    River,     307  f. ;    Industrial 

Mission,  339,  341. 
Zangzok,  China,  191. 
Zanzibar,  343-6. 
Zaria,  Nigeria,  299. 
Ziegenbalg,  Bartholomew,  47-9. 
Zigua,  East  Africa,  345. 
Zinzendorf,  Count  von,  50,  54. 
Zonnebloem  College,  Capetown,  311. 
Zoroastrians  in  China,  168, 
Zucchelli,  a  missionary  on  the  Congo, 

302. 
Zulu  Bible,  328. 
Zululand,  313. 
Zwemer,     Dr.    S.     M.,    re    Moslem 

population  of  the  world,  465  ;  re 

prospects  of  missions  to  Moslems, 

470  f. 
Zwingli,   his  teaching  in  regard  te 

pious  heathen,  43. 


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Professor  of  Ecclesiastical  History,  Protestant  Episcopal  Divinity  School, 
Cambridge,  Mass.  [^ow  Ready. 

PHILOSOPHY  OF  RELIGION.  By  George  Galloway,  D.D.,  Minister 
of  United  Free  Church,  Castle  Douglas,  Scotland.  r,^       „     , 

[Now  Ready. 

HISTORY  OF  RELIGIONS.  L  China,  Japan,  Egypt,  Babylonia,  Assyria, 
India,  Persia,  Greece,  Rome.  By  George  F.  Moore,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Pro- 
fessor in  Harvard  University.  [Now  Ready. 

HISTORY  OF  RELIGIONS.  II.  Judaism, Christianity, Mohammedanism. 
By  George  F.  Moore,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Professor  in  Harvard  University. 

APOLOGETICS.  By  A.  B.  Bruce,  D.D.,  sometime  Professor  of  New  Testa- 
ment Exegesis,  Free  Church  College,  Glasgow.  [Revised  and  Enlarged  Edition. 


The    International    Theological    Library 


THE  CHRISTIAN   DOCTRINE  OF  GOD.      ByWiLLlAMN  Clarke  D  D 
sometime  Professor  of  Systematic  Theology,  Hamilton  Theological'  Semi'- 

[Now  Ready, 

■^"^.  ^OfTRINE  OF  MAN.     By  WiLLiAM  P.  Paterson,  D.D.,  Professot 

of  Divmity,  University  of  Edinburgh.  *  i-roiessor 

THE  DOCTRINE  OF  THE  PERSON  OF  JESUS  CHRIST.   By  H  R 

Mackintosh,  Ph.D.,  D.D.,  Professor  of  Theology,  New  College,  Edinburgh.' 

[Now  Ready. 

WN^.  n"n '^"'"'r   '^^f^,'"'^^  0/  SALVATION.    By  George  B.  Ste- 
VENS,  D.D.,  sometime  Professor  of  Systematic  Theology,  Yale  University. 

[Now  Ready, 

P^ow^''?7n  ''I  °/  '"'S''?'"^"'"''^   ^''^^-    ^y   William    Adams 
sSa;y,N^w  Yor"!'""    ''    '^''^"^^"   ^'^^^°^^'   ^"^^°    T^-^^^^^^^ 

CHRISTIAN  ETHICS.  By  Newman  Smyth,  D.D.,  Pastor  of  Congrega 
tional  Church,  New  Haven.  [Revised  a,id  Enlarged  Edition, 

THE    CHRISTIAN     PASTOR    AND    THE    WORKING     CHURCH       Bv 

Washington  Gladden,  D.D.,  i^astor  of  Congregational  Church,  Columbus 
^^^'''  [Now  Ready. 

THE  CHRISTIAN    PREACHER.     By  A.  E.  Garvie,  D.D.,  Principal  of 

New  College,  London,  England.  ^ 

HISTORY  OF  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONS.  By  ChARLES  HenRY  RobiN- 
SON,  D.D.,  Hon.  Canon  of  Ripon  Cathedral  and  Editorial  Secretary  of  the 
Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts. 

[Now  Ready. 


The  International  Critical  Commentary 


ARRANGEMENT   OF   VOLUMES   AND   AUTHORS 
THE  OLD  TESTAMENT 

uENESIS.  The  Rev.  John  Skinner,  D.D.,  Principal  and  Professor  Oi 
Old  Testament  Language  and  Literature,  College  of  Presbyterian  Church 
of  England,  Cambridge,  England.  [TVoif  Ready, 

EXODUS.  The  Rev.  A.  R.  S.  Kennedy,  D.D.,  Professor  of  Hebrew, 
University  of  Edinburgh. 

LEVITICUS.    J.  Y.  Stenning,  M.A.,  Fellow  of  Wadham  College,  Oxford. 

NUMBERS.  The  Rev.  G.  BUCHANAN  Gray,  D.D.,  Professor  of  Hebrew, 
Mansfield  College,  Oxford.  \_Now  Ready. 

DEUTERONOMY.  The  Rev.  S.  R.  Driver,  D.D.,  D.Litt,  sometime 
Regius  Professor  of  Hebrew,  Oxford.  {Now  Ready. 

JOSHUA.  The  Rev.  George  Adam  Smith,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Principal  of  the 
University  of  Aberdeen. 

JUDGES.  The  Rev.  George  F.  Moore,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Professor  of  The- 
ology, Harvard  University,  Cambridge,  Mass.  {Now  Ready. 

SAMUEL.  The  Rev.  H.  P.  Smith,  D.D.,  Librarian,  Union  Theological 
Seminary,  New  York.  \Nov)  Ready. 

KINGS.  The  Rev.  Francis  Brown,  D.D.,  D.Litt.,  LL.D.,  President 
and  Professor  of  Hebrew  and  Cognate  Languages,  Union  Theological 
Seminary,  New  York  City. 

CHRONICLES.  The  Rev.  Edward  L.  Curtis,  D.D.,  Professor  of 
Hebrew,  Yale  University,  New  Haven,  Conn.  [Now  Ready, 

EZRA  AND  NEHEMIAH.  The  Rev.  L.  W.  Batten,  Ph.D.,  D.D.,  Pro- 
lessor  of  Old  Testament  Literature,  General  Theolcgical  Seminary,  New 
York  City.  [Now  Ready. 

PSALMS.  The  Rev.  Chas.  A.  Briggs,  D.D.,  D.Litt.,  sometime  Graduate 
Professor  of  Theological  Encyclopaedia  and  Symbolics,  Union  Theological 
Seminary,  New  York.  [2  vols.     Now  Ready. 

PROVERBS.  The  Rev.  C.  H.  Toy,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Professor  of  Hebrew, 
Harvard  University,  Cambridge,  Mass.  \^Now  Ready, 

JOB.  The  Rev.  S.  R.  Driver,  D.D.,  D.Litt.,  sometime  Regius  Professor 
of  Hebrew,  Oxford. 


The  International  Critical  Commentary 


ISAIAH.  Chaps.  I-XXVII.  The  Rev.  G.  Buchanan  Gray,  D.D.,  Pro- 
fessor  of  Hebrew,  Mansfield  College,  Oxford.  [Now  Ready, 

ISAIAH.  Chaps.  XXVIII-XXXIX.  The  Rev.  G.  Buchanan  Gray,  D.D. 
Chaps.  LX-LXVI.  The  Rev.  A.  S.  Peake,  M.A.,  D.D.,  Dean  of  the  Theo- 
logical Faculty  of  the  Victoria  University  and  Professor  of  Biblical  Exegesis 
'm  the  University  of  Manchester,  England. 

JEREMIAH.  The  Rev.  A.  F.  Kirkpatrick,  D.D.,  Dean  of  Ely,  sometime 
Regius  Professor  of  Hebrew,  Cambridge,  England. 

EZEKIEL.  The  Rev.  G.  A.  Cooke,  MA.,  Oriel  Professor  of  the  Interpre- 
tation of  Holy  Scripture,  University  of  Oxford,  and  the  Rev.  Charles  F. 
BuRNEY,  D.Litt.,  Fellow  and  Lecturer  in  Hebrew,  St.  John's  College, 
Oxford. 

DANIEL.  The  Rev.  John  P.  Peters,  Ph.D.,  D.D.,  sometime  Professor 
of  Hebrew,  P.  E.  Divinity  School,  Philadelphia,  now  Rector  of  St.  Michael's 
Church,  New  York  City. 

AMOS  AND  HOSEA.  W.  R.  Harper,  Ph.D.,  LL.D.,  sometime  President 
of  the  University  of  Chicago,  Illinois.  [Now  Ready. 

MICAH,  ZEPHANIAH,   NAHUM,    HABAKKUK.    OBADIAH   AND  JOEL. 

Prof.  John  M.  P.  Smith,  University  of  Chicago;  W.  Hayes  Ward,  D.D.. 
LL.D.,  Editor  of  The  Independent,  New  York;  Prof.  Julius  A.  Bewer, 
Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York.  [Now  Ready, 

HAGGAI.  ZECHARIAH,  MALACHI  AND  JONAH.  Prof.  H.  G.  MiTCHELL, 
D.D.;  ProL  John  M.  P.  Smith,  Ph.D.,  and  Prof.  J.  A.  Bewer,  Ph.D. 

[Now  Ready, 

ESTHER.  The  Rev.  L.  B.  Paton,  Ph.D.,  Professor  of  Hebrew,  Hart- 
ford Theological  Seminary.  [Now  Ready. 

ECCLESIASTES.  Prof.  George  A.  Barton,  Ph.D.,  Professor  of  Bibli- 
cal Literature,  Bryn  Mawr  College,  Pa.  [JVow  Ready. 

RUTH,  SONG  OF  SONGS  AND  LAMENTATIONS.  Rev.  Charles  A. 
Briggs,  D.D.,  D.Litt.,  sometime  Graduate  Professor  of  Theological  Ency- 
.clopaedia  and  Symbolics,  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York. 


THE  NEW  TESTAMENT 

ST.  MATTHEW.    The  Rev.  Willoughby  C.  Allen,  M.A.,  Fellow  and 
Lecturer  in  Theology  and  Hebrew,  Exeter  College,  Oxford.       [Now  Ready. 

ST.   MARK.    Rev.  E.  P.  GouLD,  D.D.,  sometime  Professor  of  New  Testa- 
ment Literature,  P.  E.  Divinity  School,  Philadelphia.  [Now  Ready. 

ST.  LUKE.    The  Rev.  Alfred  Plummer,  D.D.,  late  Master  of  University 
College,  Durham.  [Now  Ready. 


The  International  Critical  Commentary 


ST.  JOHN.     The  Right  Rev.  John  Henry  Bernard,  D.D.,  Bishop  of 

Ossory,  Ireland. 

HARMONY  OF  THE  GOSPELS.  The  Rev.  WiLLlAM  SandaY,  D.D., 
LL.D.,  Lady  Margaret  Professor  of  Divinity,  Oxford,  and  the  Rev.  Wil- 
LOUGHBY  C.  Allen,  M.A.,  Fellow  and  Lecturer  in  Divinity  and  Hebrew, 
Exeter  College,  Oxford. 

ACTS.  The  Rev.  C.  H.  Turner,  D.D.,  Fellow  of  Magdalen  College, 
Oxford,  and  the  Rev.  H.  N.  Bate,  M.A.,  Examining  Chaplain  to  the 
Bishop  of  London. 

ROMANS.  The  Rev.  William  Sand  ay,  D.D.,  LL.D.,  Lady  Margaret 
Professor  of  Divinity  and  Canon  of  Christ  Church,  Oxford,  and  the  Rev. 
A.  C.  Headlam,  M.A.,  D.D.,  Principal  of  King's  College,  London. 

[Now  Ready, 

I.  CORINTHIANS.  The  Right  Rev.  Arch  Robertson,  D.D.,  LL.D.. 
Lord  Bishop  of  Exeter,  and  Rev.  Alfred  Plummer,  D.D.,  late  Master  ot 
University  College,  Durham.  "       [Now  Ready, 

II.  CORINTHIANS.  The  Rev.  Alfred  Plummer,  '  M.A.,  D.D.,  late 
Master  of  University  College,  Durham.  [Now  Ready. 

GALATIANS.  The  Rev.  Ernest  D.  Burton,  D.D.,  Professor  of  New 
Testament  Literature,  University  of  Chicago. 

EPHESIANS  AND  COLOSSIANS.  The  Rev.  T.  K.  Abbott,  B.D., 
D.Litt.,  sometime  Professor  of  Biblical  Greek,  Trinity  College,  Dublin, 
now  Librarian  of  the  same.  [Now  Ready, 

/PHILIPPIANS  AND  PHILEMON.  The  Rev.  Marvin  R.  VincenT, 
D.D.,  Professor  of  Biblical  Literature,  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New 
York  City.  [Now' Ready. 

THESSALONIANS.  The  Rev.  James  E.  Frame,  M.A.,  Professor  of 
Biblical  Theology,  Union  Theological  Seminary,  New  York  City. 

[Now  Ready. 
THE  PASTORAL  EPISTLES.  The  Rev.  Walter  Lock,  D.D.,  Warden 
of  Keble  College  and  Professor  of  Exegesis,  Oxford. 

HEBREWS.  The  Rev.  James  Moffatt,  D.D.,  Minister  United  Free 
Church,  Brought^  Ferry.  Scotland. 

ST.  JAMES.  The  Rev.  James  H.  Ropes,  D.D.,  Bussey  Professor  of  New 
Testament  Criticism  in  Harvard  University.  [In  Press. 

PETER  AND  JUDE.  The  Rev.  CHARLES  BiGG,  D.D.,  sometime  Regius 
Professor  of  Ecclesiastical  History  and  Canon  of  Christ  Church,  Oxford. 

INow  Ready. 

THE  JOHANNINE  EPISTLES.  The  Rev.  E.  A.  Brooke,  B.D.,  Fellow 
and  Divinity  Lecturer  in  King's  College,  Cambridge.  [Now  Ready. 

REVELATION.  The  Rev.  Robert  H.  Charles,  M.A.,  D.D.,  sometime 
Professor  of  Biblical  Greek  in  the  University  of  Dublin. 


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